Being the Part
by wideye
Summary: Rachel finally gets her star role on Broadway, but decides she's going to have to withold sex from Finn.  Her role is a teenage virgin who is very naive, and Rachel wants to be ready for the part.  Future Finchel.
1. Sex and Wrestling

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or the characters. Fox and Ryan Murphy does, and they're doing a poor job at it right now**_

Rachel runs up the stairs to their third floor apartment in New York City, she's out of breath because she ran from her theatre audition to the bus, and now to the front door, where she unlocks the door and throws her keys on the table. "Finn!" she yells out excited to tell him the great news. "Finn, are you here?"

Finn walks out of their bedroom in a towel and his hair is still wet from his shower. "What baby, what? I just got out of the shower". He tilts his head with a pensive look on his face, wondering what it is that Rachel has to tell him. He didn't know she was on an audition, because she told him she was going to Starbucks to grab a coffee and take a walk through central park. "I have something to tell you" she said with a huge grin on her face.

"What?" he said with his signature half smile. "I didn't want to jinx yet another audition, so I didn't tell you I was going on one, and well…." She smiles and looks somewhat down near his feet…"I. got. It.",as she swings her arms and side to side with a smile.

Finn's face lights up "Are you kidding me? That is great news", as he laughs in excitement and walks over to her and picks her up and kisses her on the cheek. Rachel giggles at his excitement, and lets him pick her up like they were teenagers again. "I can't believe you kept this a secret, how did you do it, and uhhhh what's the part?"…Finn had so many questions.

"Trust me, it was hard, I just figured the last year it has been so tough for me to get a part that was halfway decent, and when my agent called me and said I had an audition for a star role, I figured I should do the opposite of what I usually do". As soon as Rachel would get an audition, she would drive Finn crazy by talking about it and making him read through her lines together. He didn't mind it, but it was beginning to get tougher each time as she never got any of the parts. "And the part is the lead female role in a play called 'Spring Awakening', we start rehearsals right away actually. I was the last person that auditioned, and they didn't waste any time asking me. I report to the theatre on Monday"

"I am glad you did" Finn said, as we started walking towards the bedroom to get dressed.

Rachel followed him in the bedroom and she watched Finn drop his towel and throw on a pair of his boxers. "I honestly can't wait to see you in a real Broadway show; the guys at work are going to be jealous that my wife is a star" he smiles as he slides his deodorant on his armpits. "And you start this Monday? This will be your last weekend of being anonymous I guess" as he rambles on. Rachel smiles and leans her head on the doorway of the bedroom as she stares off into space at the thought of Finn mentioning that she's going to be a star and possibly famous. "Yeah" she sighs, and walks over to Finn, putting her hands around his waist and kissing his chest. "I am so glad I can finally make you proud of me"

"I'm proud of you all the time Rach…especially the other night when you did that thing with your tongue, and then used those handcuffs". He's half joking when he says it, but also half serious hoping she'll want to do that again soon. Rachel laughs, knowing that Finn's being jovial, but also serious that he really is proud of her. Finn leans his head down and kisses her. She lets him expand the kiss for a brief minute, and he starts to guide her down to their bed. "Finn…don't you….have to…go to work…tonight?" she says in between kisses, as he begins to lay her down; his right hand sliding down her left thigh, and his left hand playing around in her hair. Finn grunts in anger as he is reminded about work, and slowly gets off of Rachel. "I'll be home tonight after my sports report, so feel free to wait up, and we can celebrate" he says. Finn got a job as a local New York sports reporter 6 months ago, so he works all the holiday and weekend night shifts, being that he's the new guy. It seems to work with Rachel's schedule since she also works nights at a Theatre at the box office 3 times a week, and fills the rest of her time picking up odds and end theatre jobs, and small roles as she gets them. They're both night people, due to their unusual work schedule, but Rachel likes it that way, seeing that it is what she has chosen as her career. And she's glad that Finn is on the same time schedule, since they get to sleep in and spend their mornings together.

Rachel sits up on the bed and is facing Finn standing up over her…"I will definitely wait up for you to celebrate" Rachel playfully moves her hand down his bare chest and under his boxers and softly plays with his dick. "Rach!" Finn flinches and grabs her hand out of there, jumps back laughing. He loves that she's playful, but hates that she always does it when he can't react. He changes the subject in order to keep Finn Jr. in order before he goes into work. "Order Chinese, and I'll bring home a bottle of wine", he moves into their small walk in closet to grab his suit pants, and his shirt.

"Make sure you get 2 bottles of wine, I feel like getting a bit tipsy" as she yells out to him. "Ohh, a buzzed Rachel tonight? It's going to be hard to concentrate at work", he pops his head out of the closet and winks.

"Well, why not celebrate the last weekend that no one will recognize the name Rachel Berry?" Her legal name is Rachel Hudson, but she decided to keep Berry as her stage name, in honor of her dads. She sighs with relief knowing that she's finally got a solid Broadway part, and it's guaranteed to run for 4 months. She knows that if she puts her heart and soul in this, then it can lead to a Tony nomination, and possibly open the door for other roles. This is her one shot, she's certain, and doesn't want to screw it up.

Finn walks out of the closet dressed in a grey suit and a salmon colored shirt and a matching tie, which Rachel bought for him when she found out he got the sportscaster job. Of course, she says it's pink, but Finn insists it's "salmon".

"You got my favorite shirt on" Rachel smiles seductively. "Yeah, I want to wear something you bought me, so you can rip it off later", Finn looks down at her still sitting on the bed. "I'll be home right after the news", he leans down and kisses her. "I took the liberty and picked out that lacey Victoria's Secret thing that you NEVER seem to wear, and laid it out for you on your dresser", she turns her head and sees it lying on top of the dresser. "How did you even find it" she laughs. "I know where all your lingerie is, which isn't much" he makes fun. He throws his fist up to bump hers, and she responds, and he walks out of the bedroom and off to work.

Rachel falls back on their bed, smiles and stares at the ceiling. She knows this is the part that will change her life, and she's glad Finn is in her life, but for a second, she thinks it would be easier to take this part if she were single. She knows the play has intense sexual scenes, and her character plays an adolescent discovering herself…"this is going to be tough" she says aloud to herself in their bedroom. She realizes in that moment, her marriage to Finn can play a role in her career, because she wants to be able to give her whole self to the part. She is unsure how she can be romantic with her husband, but every night play an adolescent who is a virgin and naïve. I _can't have sex with Finn_, she thinks to herself. _I need to BE this role for the next 4 months. _Rachel gets up out of bed and realizes this weekend will probably be the last weekend she and Finn will be intimate for awhile. She's _going to need to get into her part._ _Like any great actor, one must do research and become that role. _ _He's going to be so pissed at me when I tell him no sex for the next four months, but hopefully he'll understand. And then Of course, he's going to have to actually SEE the play too. Ugh. I guess this is going to be another handcuffs night, since he won't be getting any for awhile. _

"Rach!" Finn yells out as he throws the 2 bottles of champagne he just bought in the fridge. He went right for the Moet when he stopped at the liquor store, since this was a celebratory night. "Rachel…I'm home, I hope you got me the crab Rangoon too, I'm starving" he throws his jacket off and undoes his tie. "Hi baby, what are you doing home so fast from work, you usually stay a lot later" Rachel jokingly says pretending she'd forgot their earlier conversation and date with Chinese, and pre-invitation to some sexy times and celebrating tonight. Rachel walks right passed him in the kitchen, wearing old sweats and one of Finn's t-shirts. "Wait a minute, where are you going?" He grabs her by the waist and pulls her over to him as he kisses the back of her neck and squeezes the sides of her breasts. "Finn!" she squeals out, and slaps his hand. He picks her up over his shoulder and walks her over to the couch and playfully throws her over. "Ah baby?" she screams as she rolls onto the couch. He laughs and smiles at her, then leans over the couch down to kiss her, but she rolls off the couch and attempts to run back into the kitchen. Finn slides to the side and pulls out his right arm to grab her and misses her. He takes one giant leap forward and is able to grab the elastic on the back of her sweatpants, as she falls backwards into him. Rachel is giggling and trying to get away out of the big bear hug he's got her in. "Help, Patti!" she yells out to the fish in their fish bowl. "I don't think Patti can help you with this one, and you better stop yelling 'help' before the neighbors think you are being accosted" he laughs. "I AM!" she shrieks. She stretches her arms out to the counter that separates the kitchen and living area, and grabs on, as he tries to pull her back in the living room. "Finn" she laughs, "let me go". "Not until you say the magic word" he insists. "Uncle!" she yells out. "Nope" he seductively has a grin. "Ummm...i love you?" she cutely tilts her head back and looks in his eyes. "NOPE!, try agaaaaaain" he laughs.

"Come on Finn!" she chuckles out loud. She bites his arm and he yells out in a high girly pitch tone "OW", and she runs to the kitchen and hides behind one of the stools. "I can't believe you just bit me?" looking down at now his red, wet marked arm. "You started it" she stretches her arm up to the counter and grabs a crab Rangoon out of the Chinese take out bag. "Come here Finny, I got food for you" she dangles the crab Rangoon in front of her face, and he smiles and slowly hops over like a puppy dog. She puts it in his mouth and he moans "Mmmm, all better" as he pats his stomach, and she rubs his hair. Rachel giggles staring at Finn's mouth, and then grabs his arm and kisses it. He flinches for a second, given that just 2 seconds ago she bit him in that same spot. "You love to bite, don't you?" he winks at her. "I may be small, but that will teach you to mess with me" she flexes her right arm. "Haha, well I just like to test you out sometimes to make sure you can handle a guy attacking you if I'm never around to protect you. And by the way, yelling out 'help' to our fish, does not save your life", he tries to hold back a smile, trying to be serious for a second. "I know silly, if you were an intruder, I would have just kicked you in the balls…and thanks for the lesson" she says sarcastically. "You were probably just looking for an excuse to tackle me, if I didn't know any better."

Finn leans and kisses Rachel on the top of the head, "If you would have kicked me in the balls, I would have screeched even louder like a girl than you biting me" he says very matter of fact. "Oh baby, I've made you squeal like a girl many times" she winks at him. "Now, go put some music on, sit on the couch and I'll make you a plate" she demands. "Ok. I got champagne to celebrate as well, so let me go open that too", as he walks over to the fridge to pour them both a glass. He hands her a glass of champagne, and Rachel slaps his butt as he begins to walk in the living room to sit on the couch and wait for her to bring him is plate of food. "And please tell me the lacey Victoria Secret thing is on UNDER those sweats" he says as he knows there will be no such luck.

Rachel doesn't say anything in response, as she stares at the back of Finn's head while getting his food ready. _Ok, I'm going to have to tell him exactly what this role is about. I hope he takes it well._ She takes a deep breath. _Otherwise, us wrestling is not going to be so playful next time. _She mockingly thinks, as if she feels like Finn can killer her with this news.

_**End of Chapter 1, there will be more chapters. I know where the story will go, and I think it's good. I'm not a writer by trait, but more of a story teller. Sorry if it's not 100% good. Also, I have never seen Spring Awakening, just go with it. I'm assuming what it's mostly about, but that's not the important thing. I'm just trying to get across that Rachel has to be in a play that has extreme sexual themes, and she has to play a virgin. So, don't get caught up on that. This is my first story ever. Thanks.**_


	2. You're doing what?

Hey, thanks guys for the reviews! I really do appreciate it, being a first time writer and extremely new to , I was nervous to read them lol. Thanks for baring with me though, and I can take constructive criticism, so that's cool. I'm not the greatest smut writer (I'm a bit conservative, but I will try my best to at least paint a descriptive picture, especially of the kinky stuff, because I think Rachel would totally be an animal in bed), and frankly, I like Finn and Rachel having sex. I took your advice and did some research on Spring Awakening, so she can explain it to Finn. My GOD, I can't believe Lea was in that play, after reading the description myself lol. Anyway, I wrote chapter 2 today, so here you go. I plan on continuing it as much as I can, especially during the hiatus, since it's gonna be a long glee-less 2 months. I'm having a lot of fun writing this actually, and think Lea and Cory have such great timing with their lines, and are good in both drama and comedy. I'd read it just how you'd think they'd say it as actors. :)

Rachel gets his food ready on his plate and walks it over to the couch. "Thanks baby", as Finn grabs his plate of food and sets it on his lap, and throws his feet up on the coffee table. Rachel walks around the couch to sit Indian style next to him and raises her glass with her right hand. Finn grabs his glass off the coffee table and raises it next to hers. "To me…for waiting THIS long to be a star" she says somewhat impatiently. Finn laughs, knowing that it's Rachel Berry, who is only 24, but acts as if the world is over if she doesn't win a Tony by the time she's 25. And he knows she meant every word without conviction. "And…to the little people, like your husband…who knew to tap this girl in high school so he can live off of her fame and fortune, and won't have to work ever again", Finn replies with a smile on his face. "You're welcome" she smiles as they cling their glasses together, and they both take a sip.

"So, tell me more about this part" Finn asks while he hands Rachel his glass so he can grab his fork and start eating his chicken fried rice. _Ok, I guess I don't have to try and bring it up, since he's doing it for me, _She thinks to herself. "Well, I play… a young girl"….she pauses, while staring at Finn while he eats his Chinese…"Aaaaand?", Finn motions his head down trying to guide her along with the answer, because she's speaking so slowly. "In late nineteenth century Germany…", Rachel says slowly waiting for Finn's reaction, but realizes she's not giving him anything to react to yet. "…Who…is somewhat…naïve (_a virgin)_, and her mother…doesn't share a lot of stuff with her…about life _(like where babies come from)_, and she has to discover a lot…on uhhhh…on her own" _(like abuse, falling in love with this guy and having sex for the first time, learning where babies come from, masturbation and abortion)_, Rachel smiles as she explains it to Finn because in her head she explained the story, but realized she didn't say the important details out loud to him. Finn just nods, barely listening while finishing his food…"Sounds great", he smiles thinking this musical sounds really boring and dull, and hopes he has to work a lot of these nights. _No offense,_ he thinks to himself.

Finn sets his empty plate down on the coffee table and scoots closer to Rachel, grabs their glasses of champagne and puts them down next to his plate. He moves back and places his right hand on her left cheek and leans in for a kiss. Rachel kisses him back, and Finn takes his left hand and tries pulling up her t-shirt. He pulls back from the kiss for a second, "Man, Victoria's Secret really knows how to make some sexy shirts", he attempts making a passive aggressive comment about her NOT wearing the lingerie he left out for her earlier. "Yeah, it's…some secret", she laughs. She starts to unbutton his shirt, but can't get as comfortable as she wants because she knows she didn't tell him all the _minor _details of what the musical is really about. She pulls away, "F-Finn…wait" she abruptly says. "What? Is it because you can taste the chicken fried rice, and you're a vegan, do you take it THAT seriously?" he rolls his eyes. "Last time we made out after I ate a hamburger, you had your tongue so far down my throat, I'm pretty sure you digested some of it" he smirks. "No, that's not it…I-I-I…might have left a few things out about the musical and the role that I play", she stutters. "I sure hope so, because to be honest, the way you described it sounds like a snore fest", he tries to joke. "Well, after you hear what it's really about, you might want to go back to that snore fest", she kisses him and then moves back from him to create some space. Keeping her eyes on his, she puts both her hands into his, and tells him what she was afraid to say. "You see, I play this naïve adolescent, virgin". "Virgin?" Finn cuts her off and laughs. "You find that funny?...Ok" she shakes her head at how goofy and childlike her husband can be. "Well, remember how I told you my mom doesn't tell me a lot about life? I sort of learn throughout the play about where babies come from…and abuse situations, ummm…ohh yeah abortion…and what else? Uhhh mastur…masturbation" she nods up and down like she just rambled off a grocery list, trying to make it not such a big deal. She doesn't think she ever actually said the word masturbation out loud, and especially not to her husband, as kinky as she gets with him. Finn's eyes are as wide as she's ever seen them. He doesn't say anything for a few seconds, and then looks down at her crotch. "Why are you looking at my crotch?" as she looks down at it too. Finn points to it and says quickly back "Is that gonna be out at all for the play"? "NO, not at all!, she quickly retorts. "Oh, ok" he half smiles. "Just my booooo…bs", she hesitantly says and grabs her champagne from the coffee table and slowly takes a sip, and then her big brown eyes look at Finn's reaction, and she downs the whole glass. "Ok, who wants more champagne"? she asks, as she jumps off the couch and goes to the kitchen to pour herself a new glass.

Finn turns his head toward the kitchen, "So like, your boobs are showing, but the girls will be safely…_he waves his right hand over his own chest_…in a bra" he says it as if it's not a question, but is looking for assurance. "Welllll….the girls_,_ as you called them, and you probably need to stop watching reruns of Sex and the City…will be mostly in a dress, but there's a scene where they come out to play", she starts to walk towards the couch. "PLAY?" he shockingly yells out. "Uh uh uh, bad choice of words" she admits. "I mean, they will be exposed during a…simulated…sex scene" _(_she muffles over "sex scene"), she sits back on the couch next to him and looks away. "Simulated whaaa?" he leans in towards her afraid of the answer. "Sex. Scene. SEX SCENE" she yells out and throws her arms up in the air thinking _why me?_ "Look Finn, I'm not going to gloss over this because of course you're going to see this musical, and it's pretty racy. But, it's all acting, and it means nothing for me, other than wanting the star treatment I deserve for the first time in my life. This is the part of a lifetime, they're already buzzing tony nominations for this" she continues to ramble as Finn now grabs his champagne glass and finishes it off. "Who's the dude?" he walks over to the kitchen to grab another glass of champagne. "Oh, well that's the good news?" she peps up. "It's a chick?", he excitedly thinks of the possibilities. "No, I mean, the good news is that you've met HIM", she rolls her eyes at him thinking it could be a girl and that he got excited. "He works at the box office with me. Our manager suggested we both try out for the play because we have really good chemistry, and we're both theatre trained". "NICK? That tall, handsome blond, Brad Pitt looking guy? And how can you have good chemistry ripping tickets for people?" he mocks and pours the champagne in his glass, but then grabs the bottle and swigs it when he finds out it's Nick.

"Finn", she smiles at how cute he is for being jealous. "I don't even like blondes", she tries to joke with him, and walks over to him to give him a hug. He is still standing in the kitchen with the bottle of champagne in his hand. "I like... YOU", as she looks up at him and kisses him. "Ok, well, I guess it DOES kind of turn me on that you'll be all naked and stuff on stage, it will probably get me horny. I mean, the lucky guys that get to see your tits from the audience can only look in admiration, and not touch, but I'll get to go home and play with them every night", he thinks positively and slips his tongue in her mouth this time, still clenching on to the champagne bottle. _Fuck_. she thinks to herself, because she still has to tell him about her idea about not wanting to be intimate to really get into the part

"Well, Brad…I-I-I mean, NICK…will get to touch them, but that's all" she tries to make it sound like no big deal. "NOT…exactly happy about it, but you guys have that awesome box office chemistry" he sarcastically says. "I think you're the one who wins in this situation, you'll get to grind with Rusty Ryan every night, and then come home to me: The hottest guy alive" he laughs, because he knows he's not the hottest guy alive, but he knows Rachel thinks so. "I kind of thought he was hotter in Meet Joe black" she jokingly refers to the Brad Pitt character, and completely ignores Finn's comment about himself. He tickles her for being a smart ass, and he accidently spills a bit of the champagne on her shirt. "Hey, you got me wet", she yells. "I plan on getting you wetter than that" he smirks, and puts the champagne bottle down on the table and rips his shirt off of her. "Finn, watch your language in front of Patti" she pretends to be serious. "I know, otherwise Patti will call the cops on me again" he grabs her hand and starts to guide her towards the couch. She leans back with her left hand and grabs the champagne bottle off the table while still in a forward motion. "We're not letting this champagne go to waste. We should take a bath in it" her eyes brighten up. "Babe, that…is disgusting. I feel like my penis would shrink in it or something", he admits out loud. "That is the dumbest thing I've ever heard Hudson. Although, to be honest, I wouldn't mind if it shrank a little. I was sore the first year we had sex I think". He gets up and walks over to her and hugs her from behind. "Then how about we dance" he whispers in her ear. She turns around to face him and kisses him, "I said the FIRST year, not now", she laughs. "Oh, then screw the dancing, let's have sex" he pulls her to the couch and she falls on top of him, as she giggles. He tries to unclasp her bra, but is having a hard time. "Geez, I hope you wear an easier clasp to undo on stage" she laughs, and he tries to make jokes of this new situation. He trusts Rachel, and knew she would star in a romantic role at some point. He was just not ready for this day, and certainly didn't think the romantic role would pretty much Elizabeth Berkley, a la Showgirls. He's not happy about it, but if he's not supportive of her, then it would just be worse. He has to trust her.

Rachel helps Finn unclasp her bra as she's lying on top of him, kissing him senseless. Once the girls, as Finn likes to say, are free, Finn stares at them at first. "Man, I can't believe box office, chemistry boy gets to fondle these every night" he sighs. "He may get to touch them Mr. Hudson, but you are the only one who gets to suck on them", grabbing his hair pulling herself slightly up so they are dangling in front of his face. Finn smiles, at ease with Rachel's words and starts to do exactly what she said pretty boy can't. He caresses her left breast, as he sucks on her right, nibbling her nipple with his teeth. Rachel lets out a soft moan, "Finnnn" she exhales. "I love you Rachel", as he switches hands and does the same to the other breast.

Rachel feels content with Finn's reaction to her new role, and loves having sex with her husband. She doesn't know when to tell him that she thinks they shouldn't have sex, or be intimate at all for the duration of the play. _Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. I wonder if I should tell him now before we start to fuck, or after when he's satisfied_…she thinks to herself_. After. I should tell him after for sure. This way, he'll be happy and more at peace, and be able to think more clear._

Finn pulls Rachel back down so their mouths meet. She takes her hands and continues what she started to do 10 minutes ago, which was to finish unbuttoning his shirt. She can feel him getting harder underneath her, and she wants to tease him as long as he can stand. "We really need to get these sexy sweat pants off of you", he remarks. She laughs at his sarcasm, and lets him do all the work. He grabs the elastic and starts to slide them down, as she is still lying on top of him. He sits up, and they now switch places and sides on the couch, so he's now towering over her. He loves it when she takes charge, but he knows his wife all too well, and recognizes that she's trying to take things slower. After their conversation, which seemed like an eternity, he just wants to be inside of her now. As he kisses her neck, and nibbles at her ear, her hands are busy unbuttoning his buckle and pants. He can't take it anymore, so he stands up and takes them off and throws them across the room to the floor. She looks at him in lust, and he bends his knee on the couch to move back over her, but she slips away from under him and gets up. She walks over to his pants on the floor, in just her underwear, and picks them up and brushes them off and sits them neatly on the chair in the living room. "What?" she looks at him like he should know. "You only got one wear out of them, and I'm not going to waste money at the cleaners because you threw them in a knot on the floor" she barks back. "Are you going to talk to Brad like that?" he laughs. "It's NICK", she laughs, "And no, he's not going to drive me crazy like you. I don't have to pick up his dry cleaning. Fake husbands are good for that" she bites her bottom lip, smiling. "Oh, if I wasn't so turned on by you right now, I'd…" Rachel cuts him off "You'd what?" she teases, as she walks over to him and sits back on top of him on the couch and let's her tongue travel in his mouth. He moans, and forgets what he was mad at her for.

They continue to make love on the couch, which before he entered her, Rachel made him go grab a sheet to put over it so it stays clean. Even when she interrupts the most heated, sexiest moment they're having, he somehow finds it sexier just how neurotic she can be.

As they lay there in each other's arms, Rachel thinks about how she's going to approach the "no sex" thing for the next 4 months. _Ok, he's satisfied now, twice actually, so I should just tell him. I mean, it's only 4 months. Some married couples have gone longer I'm sure. Finn's not really some horny beast either, I mean, I'd say I initiate it just as much as he does. Maybe I'm the one that will have the problem? _she giggles to herself of the thought of him being able to take this better than her.

"What are you laughing about" Finn says as he rubs her back in a circular motion. "Nothing, was that out loud?" she asked. She gets off of him slowly, and walks in the bathroom to grab a robe that she throws on. She walks over to the kitchen, "I'm opening that other bottle of champagne" she proudly says. "Oh, you were serious about getting drunk? I love drunk Rachel…the last time you got drunk, you insisted on giving me a blow job in that taxi, but I stopped you because…"OK, FINN, let's not bring that up" she interrupts with wide eyes as she sings the last 2 words. "They were handing out free shots at the bar on American Idol night every time our assigned host would say a certain word. I didn't know I'd be stuck with Randy, and the secret word was 'dawg'…I'd say it was an unfair advantage to say the least." as she bit back. I was turned on", he shrugged. "I just know you get more loose, and then I can talk you into more sexy times" he says in his best Borat voice. She rolls her eyes, knowing he's sort of right, but will never admit it. "Where are the handcuffs?" she slyly says. "Ooooh, I like where this is going", Finn jumps off the couch to go look for them. She takes a sip of her champagne, and Finn comes back from the bedroom with a frown on his face. "Can't find them", as he grabs his empty champagne glass and walks over to Rachel, holding it out wanting her to pour him more. She unties her robe and tries to hug him inside with her. "I'm too big for this" he laughs. "Yeah, but you're going to scare Patti" she laughs. "That fish bowl is like a magnifying glass, she's probably wondering what that huge stick is", she smiles. "Wow" he blushes a bit. He nods his head back and forth in amazement at some of the stuff that Rachel can say. She's quick on the draw for sure. They stay standing in the same position, and Rachel looks up at Finn..."Finn…I was thinking about the musical and my part…and it's going to be real intense…" she suddenly looks down to the floor. "I know, it's ok Rachel, as long as you do what you just did on that couch to me every night, I think I'll be ok" he smiles. "Well, that's just….it" she hesitantly continues. "I think we should cool it on being so intimate, for the sake of the roll. I want to be able to understand the character, and I want to really step in, BEING this character".

Finn doesn't say anything right away, and then opens his mouth but nothing comes out. Finally, he speaks…"So…you want to be a virgin….again?" he questions with uncertainty. "Well, celibate for awhile would be what I was thinking" she looks at him with her puppy dog, brown eyes. Finn steps out of the robe that they were sharing and walks over to the floor to pick up his boxers to slide on. "What are you thinking?" she stares at him right in the eyes. "I'm thinking…first, you tell me you're going to be fondled by Brad Pitt's understudy…Now, you're telling me I can't have sex with you for awhile"…she tries to interrupt, but he keeps going…"ALL of this, meanwhile, he gets to touch, kiss and grind on you every night?" he looks back at her with the same intense glare. "Well, not for awhile…just until the musical is…over, OR MAYBE NOT…maybe just until I get this part and feeling down" she sips her champagne hoping that she'll get her buzz back and this conversation will be much easier. "Oh, Rachel, you are KILLING me" he throws his arms up, but she can't tell if he's truly mad, or just trying to get through the initial shock. He takes a deep breath and sighs. She says nothing, she lets him work this out on his own without trying to convince him it's a good idea. She understands what she's asking, especially after he took the other news so well. "Ok, Rach…this is your first big role. And this is going to…" "Suck?" she interrupts finally. He smiles a bit, "yeah, suck" as he nods up and down. "BUT…I'm going to be the loving, endearing, and understanding husband that you expect me to be", he picks up his champagne and takes a sip, and begins to talk again. "But you better win that God damn Tony" he points the champagne glass in her direction with force. She smiles and runs over to him, "I swear, you are the greatest husband…EVER" she kisses him all over his face, and starts to lick and gently bite his neck. "I know, I know" he says with some doubt. _I trust you_, he says to himself.

END OF CHAPTER 2

ok, well, as I said before, I know there this story is going, so there will definitely be more chapters. i'm hoping to get those handcuffs in a scene too, i promise lol. hope i got the "spring awakening" thing down. i wouldn't focus too much on it, like i said before, i was using the play as inspiration. thanks again! i really do appreciate everything.


	3. One Long Month

_**Thanks again for the reviews. Everyone is so nice! I can't tell you how much I appreciate everyone and their kind words. I hope this chapter is ok…and let me know if it's too long, I didn't know how to break it up. Also, I'm really trying to keep true to the characters, but also realize they're older, and they're married to each other. And whoever said to start a new chapter when a new character talks…I'm on it ;) thanks! **_

Finn is lying on his stomach, when he is awaken by the sunlight that's hitting his left eye. He closes his eyes real fast again. "Argh" he groans. He turns his head to the right towards the night stand to see what time it is. _9:15am_ it reads. He realizes it's way too early to get up on a Sunday morning, especially since he was banging Rachel until 3:00am. He smiles thinking about it, then realizes today might be the last day to do that. He stretches his left arm all the way out, and realizes Rachel is out of the bed. He hears the toilet flush, and Rachel comes walking out of the bathroom. "Rach…can you shut the room darkeners please" he begs Rachel. She had bought them at Target last year when they both figured they sleep later than most people, and the eastern exposure in their bedroom never helps them in the morning. She walks over in Finn's t-shirt and her underwear and closes the blinds. "Ahhh, much better, thank you", he smiles and slowly starts to drift back to sleep, never really moving from his position on his stomach. Rachel doesn't even bother walking around the bed, and she crawls over Finn to get to her side. "Ouch, my ribs", he cries out.

"Oh, I'm not that heavy" she says as she rolls her eyes. She cuddles as close to him as she possibly can, and closes her eyes. Finn moves his left hand to position it over Rachel's right breast under her t-shirt. He doesn't squeeze, pinch, or massage it, he just let's his hand rest on it. Rachel giggles to herself knowing that he's trying to get one last feel before Nick starts to take over tomorrow. She sighs because she likes the feeling of his warm hand on her bare breast, and wonders what it will be like for another guy to touch her in that way. Before she can fall asleep, her cell phone goes off. She can't remember where she put it, but she definitely hears it. She lifts her head up, and spots it on the nightstand on Finn's side. He doesn't even flinch, but she lifts her right elbow up and digs it in Finn's back as she reaches for her phone with the other hand.

"You really need to stop doing that" he complains of her digging into his back again, as he rolls over on his side facing the opposite direction of Rachel.

"Sorry, I didn't realize I left my phone on your side of the bed" she begins to apologize as she silences is it. She lays back down on her back and looks through her missed calls and text messages. Finn, without looking, grabs her phone from her and throws it on the floor.

"Hey, you're lucky we have carpet in the bedroom" she yells at him. He starts to laugh cynically, and she punches his side. He finally rises up and moves on top of Rachel. She laughs, knowing that he'll win this wrestling match yet again, especially when he always playfully tries to pin her down. "I swear Hudson, I'm going to take a self defense class and learn how to get out of your stranglehold" she threatens him. He starts to kiss her and attempts to push his tongue in her mouth, but she won't have any of it. "Finn, no" she moves her face to the side and pulls back.

"Come on, you don't start rehearsals until tomorrow!" he whines back. He pouts and moves off of her and falls on his back and stares at the ceiling. "I thought we can fool around today" he whines. Rachel rolls over and cuddles him.

"I am trying to wean myself off of you…and vice versa" she explains, also knowing that she sounds like it's an addiction. "I need to get ready for tomorrow, and find some peace within, this is not going to be an easy part to play" she tries to convince him.

"Yeah, and neither is my part", he shoots back at her. He jolts out of their bed and walks in their walk in closet. Rachel can't see what he's doing in there, but wonders WHY he went in there. He walks out a few minutes later wearing Rachel's secret lingerie stash for Finn's eyes only.

"Finn!" Rachel cries out in shock. "What are you doing baby? That lacey tank top barely fits you, you're going to rip it" Finn starts to mock Rachel's sexy moves that she sometimes does for him when she wants to have sex. She can't help but laugh, knowing she's not the smoothest girl in the bunch, but she knows he finds her irresistible. "If that's what I look like wearing that, then I give you permission to divorce me" she jokes. Finn jumps back in bed and tries one more time with Rachel. He starts to kiss her again, and she doesn't fight it as much as she wants to.

"Finn…I need…to know…what it's like….to…be….a virgin…again" she says between kisses. Finn starts to kiss her neck and play with her hair. "And you…wearing my lingerie does not…turn me on", as she closes her eyes loving the feeling.

"I see your sexy moves work" he whispers in her ear. His hands travel down to her underwear and he begins to slide them down. She moves her knees up slightly, so it's harder for him to slide them all the way down. He can tell she's making this difficult, but is having a hard time resisting the urge. His mouth travels down to her shoulder and then her collar bone. "Mmmmm" Rachel moans and bites her bottom lip, as he starts to suck on her nipple. His left hand moves up to the other side of her breast, and he moves down to her stomach. Still massaging her breast with his left hand, he begins to kiss his way down passed her belly button. Rachel grabs his hair and moves his head out of that region, knowing she's beginning to get wet. If he recognizes that, he'll go to town and she won't be able to stop him.

"Let's change positions" she says seductively. Finn smiles. She rolls around on top of him and slides off of him, and her feet land on the floor. "I am going to take a shower" as she walks in the bathroom, she leaves the door open. Finn's not sure if that's an invitation to join, or maybe just an invitation to watch. Either way, he's pretty sure he just got schooled by Rachel. He starts to think that his right hand is going to be extremely busy these next four months. Finn gets off the bed and walks in the bathroom as Rachel is undressing to get in the shower.

"Hey, that reminds me" he says as he stares her down while she's getting undressed.

"What?" she looks at him confused, "Reminds you…what?"

"I was just thinking of how I'll have to keep myself busy these next four months, but what about you?" he asks. She's still lost in what he's trying to get across. She puts her hand out to test the water, and opens the glass door to get in. She looks back at him through the door, and he's still standing in the bathroom waiting for her response.

"You mean…like, getting off?" she asks with a puzzled face as to why he cares. "I'm going to be full out celibate for the duration of the play, is the plan…it's not really a big deal" she proudly says. He starts to laugh at her, but he's also kind of scared because he knows just how dangerous she can be when focused. "Finn, I don't even masturbate that much anyway, so I don't see the big deal. Women are different; we have other things we think about throughout the day"

"Yeah, but you don't have to masturbate when you're getting some with me on a regular basis; which now you won't be. And, you'll be making out with pretty box office boy every night, and simulating sex. You don't think you'll get horny?" he asks. Rachel is washing her hair, but hears everything he's saying. He continues to ramble, "I mean, you yourself said it; you'll be fully committed to this part. Doesn't that mean feeling the urges too?" He is not exactly excited to think about all this, but he knows it's a lost case to argue, she's doing this musical, and she's going to be doing these scenes. He's trying to feel her out to see just how serious she is about this whole thing.

"Au contraire sweet Finny" she jokingly mocks as she rinses the shampoo out of her hair. "That's the whole point of me doing this. I NEED to feel this part, BE this part. I can go without sex easily; most of the time I have sex with you because I'm fulfilling my duties to you as your wife. Now, I'm going to fulfill my duties as an actor and NOT have sex with you". _I have no idea what I just said_, _and that possibly sounded like an insult to Finn,_ she thought. She smiles knowing that really didn't make a lot of sense, but she knows Finn, and he gets confused when it's circular arguments, so she's probably in the clear with that insult.

"I don't know…but I still think you make out more than anyone in this bargain…at least you get to make out with someone each night and he gets to cop a feel" he says with a jealous tone. She steps out of the shower and starts to dry herself off.

"You're right, but it won't mean much, and there will be a live audience each night in front of us. I barely call that romantic and intimate. And, I'll be the one who will have to get worked up each night, faking an orgasm, only to come home and take a cold shower because I can't do anything about it" she says as she lotions up her body. "But this opportunity means a lot more to me then sex".

"Ok, this is my fault for bringing this up so let's stop talking about this." Finn walks over to Rachel and turns his back to her and lifts his arms over his head…"Now, let me out of this lacey tank" he demands. She can't help but laugh at his attempt to rile her up.

_Opening Night of the musical, One month later..._

"Finn" Rachel yells out from their bedroom. "Finn, honey, have you seen my nail polish remover? I need to get this off my nails before I get to the theatre tonight". Finn comes walking in their bedroom from the living room with a beer in his hand.

"No, why would I know where that is?" he asks puzzled. "I can go get you some if you'd like?" he smiles, knowing he's scoring some points, and secretly hoping the show goes so well she decides to award her husband with sex…_or at least a blowjob. _He smiles at the thought.

"No, that's fine, I'll borrow some from someone when I get to the theatre" she quickly responds as she tries to dart passed Finn under the doorway, but he stops her.

"Hey, hey, hey, slow down….Calm down, actually" he smiles at her and kisses her cheek. "You're going to be great" as his left hand rubs her right shoulder and he smiles. "I know you're nervous, and trust me, I am too" he rolls his eyes dreading this night. Rachel gives him a hug.

"I know you are baby, and you've been nothing but great" she leans up and gives him a peck on the mouth. "I'm going to get going so I'm not late. The show starts at 8pm sharp. You have your ticket right?" she asks him. He doesn't say anything and pulls it out of his back pocket to show her. "Ok, well, I'll see you after the show". Finn smiles and puts up his hand to gesture a "high five" and she slaps it and goes on her way. He nods his head knowing that he lasted a month, but is scared to actually watch the performance tonight. He avoided dress rehearsals and practices, which Rachel begged him to go to, but he figured why put himself through the torture early when he knew he'd eventually have to go see it at some point. He leans his head on the wall and thinks of that torture…

_3 weeks ago…_

"Fiiiiiin", Rachel nervously sings his name. "What are you doing?" She spots Finn walk out of the bathroom with a pair of handcuffs in his hand. She moved her magazine down from her face that she was reading in bed, and slowly starts to scoot back towards the headboard. He slowly walks over with a mischievous smile, and she knows full well what his intentions are. She eyes the door, planning her escape tactic, and throws the magazine at him and runs for it. "AHHHH" she screams out, desperately trying to pull herself away from his grip. "Finn, I swear to GOD…this is not funny. You can't DO this", trying to make him sound like a criminal. He's on his stomach on the bed still gripping her wrist trying to pull her back, but he doesn't have the leverage to hold on, and truly doesn't want to hurt her. She starts to slip away and his hand finds it's way to the elastic of her pajama pants. He won't let go, so she slips herself out of them and makes a mad dash towards the living room. He watches her run away with her naked butt laughing, and he smiles and puts his head down in defeat. He gets up slowly and hides the handcuffs on the back of his boxers. He slowly walks out holding both hands in the air.

"See…look at my hands, I don't have them. And by the way, nice move on the no underwear policy at night time", he smiles walking towards her slowly so she doesn't hear the jingling behind him.

"It's good to air out the vagina" she says monotone while hiding behind the couch. He laughs because he can only hear her voice, but knows exactly where she's hiding. She slowly starts to rise up over the couch so he sees her face. She eyes his entire body, and it looks like the coast is clear, no handcuffs.

"Look, you're right, I should be a lot more understanding. I'm just going to sit on the couch and watch some TV", he walks over to the exact opposite side she's standing by on the couch to sit down. Rachel watches every movement carefully, and realizes he must be legit. "Can you do me a favor and grab that controller over there?" he asks pointing to the corner of the couch she's standing behind. She starts to bend over to grab it, and suddenly turns her head to face him. Suddenly time paused: They both look in each other's eyes, as if they're having a staring contest, or a shoot out even. You can almost see a tumble weed go passed, and hear the western music. She lifts her eyebrow, and he responds and does the same movement. _Something ain't right,_ she thinks to herself. Before she has time to react, he grabs her arm and pushes her over the couch mauls over her. He then smiles and grabs her hands over her head.

"Finn, I KNEW it" she laughs at her stupidity for believing him. He tries to grab the handcuffs with his right hand, but Rachel is a sly one. She jilts her hips up to grind him while kissing his neck, and he instantly feels the pleasure. For that split second he's a bit weak, and she's able to release one of her hands and grab the handcuffs from behind his boxers. She laughs and gets on top of him this time. He smiles and lets her, of course, and is hoping she takes charge. "Let me show you how to use these" she flirtatiously says. Finn is like a deer in headlights, trying to remember what she did last time she had those. He closes his eyes and lets her do whatever she wants. She takes the cold handcuffs and starts to graze his chest with them, and he has no idea where she's going with this, but he likes it. She slides her hands up his arms sensually, and grips his wrists, putting the handcuffs on them. He smiles. She then gets up and starts to walk away.

"Where are you going", he nervously asks.

"To bed"…she flippantly says and walks towards their bedroom and closes the door. Finn gets up and follows and is having a hard time turning the knob. You can hear Rachel laughing on the other end.

"You can't leave me like this RACH-EL" he says her name very harsh. He is playing with the door, and you can still hear Rachel giggling on the other end. "This isn't funny. The keys are in the bedroom, you can't leave me out here" he shouts. He finally gets the door open with his handcuffed hands, and Rachel is just sitting on the bed staring at him waiting for him to kill her. He walks over to the bed and puts his hands out. "Please unlock me", as he gestures over to the keys sitting on his night stand. She can't help but get lost in his puppy dog face, and she takes the keys and lets him go. He smiles and bends down and kisses her. He knows he started it…and she DEFINITELY finished it. He laughs to himself. He loves this woman.

_2 weeks ago…._

"Finn" Rachel squirms away as he puts his hand under her pajama pants as they're lying in bed. "Please, you know how important this is to me", she begs. She grabs one of the 2 pillows under her head and puts it in between them. "Look what you're making me do now. I was completely fine cuddling with you, but now you lost that privilege". Finn rolls his eyes and gets up and starts to walk out of the room. "Where are you going", she asks.

"I'm going to sleep on the couch" he sighs. "Don't take it personally, it's just that you just showered and you smell really good. There's no way in hell I'll get any sleep like this", as he continues to walk to the couch. Rachel doesn't even respond because she knows what she's asking of her husband, and there's nothing she can do to make him feel better. _Maybe I'll start to look sorta bad in front of him, so he won't get turned on by me. I mean, I know how hard it is not to want a piece of this all the time. Poor guy, having to stare at me every night and not be able to act on it… I didn't realize how irresistible I am, _she thinks to herself.

_1 week ago…_

"Oh Dear Lord" Finn yells out as he walks in the living area and sees Rachel sitting on the couch in one of Finn's t-shirts and Reds Baseball cap. "Why are you wearing my clothes?" he throws his right arm out to point to his shirt and hat.

"I figured I wouldn't wear anything of mine that you deem sexy…which seems to be everything , thus me putting on your clothes and a hat to cover up my hair that you love so much." , she smiles and folds her arms. Finn walks over and sits next to her and grabs her shoulders.

"Don't you see? Now you're even MORE sexy woman?" he shakes her a bit to try and knock some sense in her. He then stands up and starts to walk out of the room…

"Finn, where are you going?" she shouts as he's walking away.

"Bathroom" he sighs. And, all you hear is the bathroom door slam.

_2 days ago…_

"Baby I'm home" Finn walks through their door and throws his keys on the table. He walks to the fridge and bends down to look for something to drink. Rachel walks in from the bedroom and sees him bending down. _Wow, his ass looks great in those pants. I don't remember him wearing that suit before. And why is his hair all sexy and sorta messy like that?_

"Hey Finn" she says in passing as she walks to the couch to grab her script. "Did you get a haircut or something" she says as she's looking down pretending to glance over the script. She doesn't want to give him any wanted attention.

"No, we got a new stylist at the studio and she insists on gel", he stands up and closes the fridge with nothing in his hand. "Are we out of beer?"

"I don't know, I'm not the one who drinks it" she shrugs. "We have wine if you want a drink, and I'll have some if you open the bottle", she says as she heads to their bedroom. Finn knows something is up by the way she barely looked at him. He follows her in the bedroom, only to walk in on her taking her shirt off to change in her pajamas. _God her abs are looking good,_ he thinks.

"Your abs are looking good" then he said it out loud. Finn has a pungent for saying what's on his mind all the time. "Must be all that sex simulation at rehearsals? I guess pretty boy is keeping you in shape" he slyly says, waiting for a snarky answer to bite him back for purposely being a jerk. This rule she put on their sex life is starting to get to him today, especially after the long night of work. She turns to look at him, smiles, and then slowly walks over to him and stands right in front of him. She's not touching him, but you can feel the heat between her chest and his. She then takes her hands and puts them on his shoulders to help her stand on her toes.

"Would you like a reenactment?" she deeply whispers in his ear. His eyes widen wondering if this is a joke.

"Yes", Finn gulps. He takes his hands and puts them on her waist and looks down to her.

"Well", she says as Finn takes a deep breath, and closes his eyes. "You're not getting one" she shuts him down and she walks out of the room. Finn bites his bottom lip knowing that he KIND OF asked for that after his rude comment, but wonders if that was unfair given that she's asked so much from him already. He starts to irrationally lash out at this point.

"NOW, you're being a bitch!" he follows her back in the living room. She turns around and shoots him a look.

"NO Finn, this is JUST as hard on me, as it is on you. Stop making this all about you" she points at him. "I'm still a loving and understanding wife. I'm not asking you to do anything. I work… I have my own paycheck…I cook…I clean…I get your dry cleaning…I even feed the God damned fish! ALL I'm asking from you is no sex during the duration of the musical. You're not getting in the way of my dreams Hudson" she blurts out, but wishes she can take back that dream part.

Finn stands there in shock, just staring at her. He then does the opposite of what she thought he was going to do. He walks over to Rachel and hugs her, and she hugs back, and neither of them say anything. To be honest, he's not sure who is right. He knows Rachel though…he's known her to be like this since high school. And he knows himself. He has a tendency to be walked all over, and has been many times. But he has to remember that she would never take advantage of his caring nature. He has to trust her. _3 more months_, he thinks to himself. _3 more months. _

Later that night in bed, Rachel rolled over and wrapped her leg around his and put her hand on his chest. He was wide awake, but he looked down and realized she was in a deep sleep when she did that. He smiled, and took his right hand and started to rub her bare leg. She squirmed even closer, subconsciously loving the contact. He moved his head down and started to place kisses around her neck, and just under her ear. He moved to position himself hovering over her, and continued to kiss her neck and down to her shoulder. She slowly started to wake up, and he knew she was going to yell at him.

"Finn" she sighs quietly. "We can't have sex" she whispers as she's awoken from a deep sleep. Finn moves up and starts to meet Rachel's mouth, and presses his lips against hers. He starts to to kiss her all over her face, and she just lays there letting him, but knowing she's going to have to stop this before it gets real serious. She gently pulls him away, but still remains in contact with him. She rolls over to the position she was before, and they cuddle and fall asleep. Finn smiles. First base never felt so good.

Finn snaps out of his daydreaming and looks at his watch. "Shit, I got to get out of here, I'm going to be late for her first night" he grabs his jacket and heads out the door.

End of chapter 3

Quick note: Finn always seems like he's the accommodating type, never pushes anyone to do anything that they don't want to. In fact, he's the one that can be easily persuaded or pushed around. This is why I didn't think it would be out of character for Finn to be so accommodating to Rachel…however, I still see him showing his frustration at times. They ARE married.


	4. Showtime

_**Thanks again to everyone who is enjoying the story, and your wonderful reviews. Let me just say, I must have re-written this chapter about 5 times. This was the toughest one to get down, because when I originally had the idea for the story, my intentions were to not show too much angst. I wanted it to be on the lighter side, and more fun. I tried to balance that out, and again; stay as true as I can to the characters as possible. Thanks!**_

Finn enters the theatre at 7:55pm. _ Just made it_, he tightens his playbill and walks over to his seat, which is in the front row. Of course, Rachel gets whatever seats she needs, and for the first show. She only asked for one. She plans on getting her dads out to New York to see the musical, but wanted just her husband to experience opening night with her. All of her close friends work with her on the musical or at the theatre, so there was no one else really to ask anyway. Finn has not really come clean with his co-workers about the exact role his wife plays, so he keeps it quiet and doesn't talk about it much with them. So, Finn sits in the audience alone to watch his wife on her Broadway debut.

_The light dims and the curtain goes up…_

Finn is amazed at Rachel's voice in the first scene. He hasn't heard her sing on stage in front of an audience since a college production of Fiddler on the Roof. His heart skips a beat, and for that moment while she's singing; he forgets about all the drama and sex-less nights that have been going on in the last month. That's what's so magical about her voice, and why he fell in love with her in the first place. _Her VOICE, _he melts hearing it knowing she belongs to him exclusively. That voice that nags him about picking up his clothes from the floor…or taking out the garbage…or never bringing the right thing home from the grocery store, even though she writes it on the list…he STILL brings the wrong type of peanut butter home. That SAME voice that laughs at him when he truly tries to be genuine with her, and of course…the same voice that moans and screams his name when he brings her to climax. It's that voice.

_Okay, this isn't that bad so far…I can see Rachel's mom is keeping important details about life from her, like…where babies come from. This isn't so bad._ He smirks, thinking about getting some junior mints. _It's even kinda funny._

_A few acts go by…_

_Okay, it's not so funny now,_ he thinks to himself. _That was really an intense scene. Now I sorta know where Rach is coming from,_ after watching the abusive scene where the guy she likes (pretty box office boy) _whips her, and then hits her to the ground._ _Perhaps I should have trusted Rachel that this would be intense, _he thinks as he starts to doubt himself of his possible selfishness acts from the past months. _Maybe I should have come and seen the dress rehearsals that she used to invite me to,_ he questions. _I mean, how DOES she go to work every day, portraying this character and go through these scenes, and then come home to goofy ol' me?_ _Seriously, where can I get junior mints though_? … as he sees some young college student eating them

_And then, THE scene…_

Finn doesn't know it's coming, but then….there it is. THE scene. The DREADED scene. He can tell it's about to happen because they jump on this bed and he fondles her body. Finn starts to grind his teeth. He doesn't like this guy, purely for the reason that he's touching his wife like that. He doesn't need another excuse….acting, or not. He starts to wish he had those junior mints, something to keep his mind off of what's about to happen next. The pretty boy rips her dress and exposes her breasts. He starts to make out with her, and then moves his mouth down to her nipple. He's pretty sure his tongue touched her right nipple, and now Finn is furious. He KNEW this scene was going to happen based on Rachel's elaborate description. And to be fair to Rachel, she DID tell him everything, but he was too stubborn to go check it out before tonight. Then the pretty boy starts to fondle her breast as he takes his pants down and straddles himself back on top of his wife. _Fuck. I really hope his dick is not anywhere close to my wife's vagina. That's MY vagina,_ he squirms at the thought. The scene is done so well that Finn really can't tell where their _business_ is. _It really looks like they're having sex up there, and Rachel is so God damned good, that I really believe she's enjoying this, _"damn her acting skills" he says under his breath. _She better be acting._

Finn is really starting to get uncomfortable as they are grinding back and forth, up and down. He gets up and stretches over 2 people in their seats and walks out to find his damn candy.

While he's in the hall getting his candy, Act 1 is done, so he sees other people pouring out in the hall to stretch and get something to eat and drink. He over hears conversation…"Wow, that scene was intense huh? I would totally fuck that girl from here to China", one dude says. "Yeah, but that guy was hot too…I hope those two are married in real life. I love it when you find out that the actors who have great chemistry and married in real life", says some chick.

Finn adjusts his tie that he's wearing and decides to step outside where the smokers are.

"Those two are totally banging in real life. That was so intense, and they looked a bit too comfortable up there" the guy laughs as he flicks his cigarette away. Finn over hears this and is furious.

"Nah", the guy's friend responds. _Finally, someone who agrees_, Finn sighs. "The guy is probably gay, but SHE probably wants to bang him", as they both laugh.

_Hehehe,_ Finn mocks their laugh inside his head. Ok, this isn't getting any better. _I'm just going to go inside and finish the musical._ He starts to think he needs something stronger than junior mints.

_The curtain goes up and the musical ends…_

Finn stands up and applauds, taking the cue from everyone else. He's FURIOUS, but at the same time, he's also very proud. Talk about mixed emotions. He knows what a great job Rachel did, and really starts to think she's really got her Tony nomination…he can't also get that scene out of his head. What a role, he shakes his head. If only, she'd reward her encouraging husband at the end of the day, maybe he'd be able to handle watching this role.

"Finn", Rachel shouts and waves when she spots him through the crowd. Finn is holding flowers and zig zags his way through the crowd of people in the back room. She smiles when she sees how adorable and handsome he looks.

"You were….magnificent", he looks at her in awe. He hands her the flowers and kisses her on the mouth. She kisses back, as he slightly slips his tongue out, but then she pulls away.

"We're all going out to celebrate the first night. Come here…" as she grabs his hand towards her dressing room so she can change real fast. She opens the door and he follows her in and he shuts the door behind him. He thinks he might be getting a little somethin' somethin'. The room is quiet, but you can hear all the noise and muffling of voices just outside the hallway. "…let me just change real fast and we can go", she said as she starts to take her dress off. He frowns.

"I thought we would go home now…just the two of us", he sits down on a chair and looks around in the room like he's waiting at a doctor's office.

"Don't you want to meet the rest of the cast? They're dying to meet you. I've told them all about you. Besides, I kind of got a rush now after this. I don't want to go home right now, I want to breathe New York City", she continues to change and not look his way.

"You can breathe it on the ride home" he doesn't understand why Rachel wants to go out afterwards, and not want to be with him. He's kind of getting irritated that she's not acknowledging that this was the first time he saw the sex scenes, and he needs her comforting persuasion that she's not going to leave him for Brad…._I mean NICK._ He shakes his head from those thoughts. He actually wants to go home and talk about it. He's not sure when he turned into a woman, but he feels like he needs her comfort. Of course, he's not telling her this, he wants her to figure it out herself. He feels if he tells her, then he's giving her a free pass to apologize and just move on. He wants her to know what this is doing to him. He basically wants his name carved into her Tony as well…if she ever gets one.

"Finn" she throws her sweater over her head and walks towards him. "I want you to come out with me, I don't want to go alone. Everyone else's significant other will be there" she rubs her hand on his forearm.

"So, I'm going out as your trophy husband?" he moves her hand away from his arm.

"No…uh no, th-th-that's not what I mean. I mean, I want to show you off to everyone!" Finn looks at her knowing she just defined what a trophy husband is. She recognizes his reaction and takes it back. "What I MEAN to say is that I want everyone to know who it is that is my one true love", she smiles big knowing she got him with that cheesy line. She can be so manipulative. _I do mean it though_, she thinks to herself. She just knows she used it for a reason to get him to go out.

"One drink" he points his index finger signaling the number 1. She smiles and kisses him passionately, and pushes her body into his. "Okay, maybe two if you do that again later" he always caves into her.

"Rachel Berry, come on we're all going to the bar", one of the cast members knocks and yells through the door.

"Let's go", Finn reluctantly responds. He takes a deep breath and lets Rachel guide the way.

When they get to the bar, there's a huge rectangular table that half the cast members are sitting at. Everyone gets so excited when they see Rachel walk through the room. They all want her attention, and all want her to sit next to them. She is the co-star of the musical, and they all love her talent. Rachel is holding Finn's hand as she waves to everyone else with the other. Finn recognizes a few people, because Rachel knew them from working at the box office. He smiles and nods at the ones he knows. He's still scoping the room for Brad…_NICK… I got to stop doing that_…but he doesn't see him.

"So, this is Finn?" one of the cast members asks as he walks up to Rachel and Finn.

"Yep, this is my fantastic hubby" Rachel responds by leaning her head into his arm squeezing it. "Finn, this is Jeff", he looks at him waiting for him to say something.

Finn looks at him quizzical for a second, then responds. "Ohhh yeah, you're the dude who wacked off to my wife's letter" he innocently says. Everyone pauses: Finn is actually proud of himself for remembering the play and the characters, and does a half smile. Rachel, still holding his hand, looks up with her mouth open, mortified. Jeff looks at him, confused at why he responded that way, but then got the cue from him that he naively said it. Jeff starts to laugh out loud. And then Finn and Rachel follow.

"Sweetie", she nervously laughs…"You don't have to bring up their parts in the musical" she whispers close to him.

"Heard a lot about you Finn", Jeff shakes his hand. "Great sportscast you do too. I've caught it a few times", Jeff smiles at Finn, thinking this guy is probably a good laugh. "So…I got to ask you Finn", Jeff pauses, " I've known Rachel for a good month now…is she just as passionate and determined at home as she is on stage?" he leans in to wait for Finn's response.

"Jeff…you have NO idea", Finn whispers back. They both laugh and Jeff walks away. Finn's starting to feel more relaxed, and maybe Rachel was right to want him to come.

"Come on Finn" Rachel drags his towards the bar. "Let's grab a drink", she smiles at him. They start to walk towards the bar when HE comes walking towards Rachel with a drink.

"Nick!" she says excitingly. He hands Rachel a glass of champagne that he had just purchased at the bar. He holds his glass up.

"To the first night…and many more" he smiles as he and Rachel cling their glasses. Finn, still holding onto Rachel's hand just looks at both of them. "Sorry, I didn't see you Finn, otherwise I would have gotten you a glass too" he smirks. Finn tightly closes his lips together murmuring something to himself that no one can hear. "Anyway, how are you doing? Haven't seen you in awhile" Nick points his glass to Finn.

"I'm good…just busy…being married to Rachel" Finn, not so subtly tries to remind everyone. Rachel breaks contact with Finn's hand and gives Nick a hug. Finn just stands there awkwardly, thinking of ways Nick can get killed on his way home tonight. _A burglar, a huge bus, a small bus, a ravenous large dog, King Kong…_

Finn snaps out of his thinking and finds himself listening to Rachel and Nick's conversation.

"So, looks like we survived the first night, AND, with good reviews thus far" Nick smiles proudly. He puts his arm around Rachel, and she touches his hand with hers.

"Yeah", Rachel smiles back. "I got to get a bigger apartment so I can get a mantle for all my awards", Rachel looks off into a distance picturing her mantle full of awards, and Nick does the same thinking about his. Finn is just staring at how smug the both of them are together. Desk Drama Award this…Tony that. They just go back and forth with rhetoric about how great they are in this musical. _I can see why they have such great chemistry now. _

"Guys, it's only the first night" Finn breaks in their conversation. They both look at him like he's got two heads, and Finn puts both his hands in his pocket and starts moving his eyes in another direction. "I think I'm going to go get a drink now" he makes a B-line for the bar. "I'll have a miller lite" he says to the bartender. "WAIT…no", he pauses, "Make that a scotch….double" he blurts out. He's not a scotch drinker, but he figures he's going to need something really strong to get through this night with the box office chemistry duo.

"Hey bartender…I'll have a gin and tonic please", says this guy who stands right next to Finn. Finn smiles at him and nods. "Hey man, how's it going?" he says looking at Finn.

"Good" Finn replies back. The guy turns around and stares out in the crowd.

"Did you see 'Spring Awakening tonight?' he asks Finn. "Whew that was hot and heavy I tell ha", the Guy gives a whistle. "Are you one of the actors?" the guy implies.

"You can say that" Finn takes another sip of his drink. The guy leans in to Finn…

"Well then I got to ask you?" he lowers his voice, "How many times do you think those 2 have had sex?" he points to Rachel and Nick. Finn follows his finger and sees Rachel and Nick sitting next to each other a little too close for comfort at that table. From Finn's point of view, he can see Nick's hand resting on Rachel's thigh, while she's laughing and chatting it up with another cast mate. She looks so comfortable, like it's a natural thing those two do_. I mean, this is PG, compared to what they are forced to do on stage. I should be happy right? _He sarcastically tries to talk himself out of going ballistic in front of a crowd. The guy walks away from the bar, and Finn turns around and orders another scotch. He plans on being double fisted for the night. He starts to walk towards Rachel and Nick.

"Can I get you guys some more champagne? " _or a room…_he asks while approaching Nick and Rachel. Rachel looks over and smiles at Finn.

"That's ok, I ordered Rachel's favorite bottle just a few second ago from the waitress" Nick smiles in her direction. "She loves her Veuve Clicquot", he says in his best French accent.

"Ohh ….ha ha ha" Finn mocks a laugh. He wants to punch this guy so hard that he feels his knuckles through his rib cage. "Rachel likes Moet, not that French crap", Finn bites back.

"ALL champagnes are French" Nick smugly responds. The entire table bursts out in laughter at Finn's ignorance of the French region where "sparkling wine" comes from. He looks at the table and feels defeated.

Rachel stands up next to Finn and holds his hand. "Finn, is everything ok?" she asks looking at him intently.

"I'm fine Rachel, I just need another drink", he walks away from her and heads to the bar.

"You have two in your hand already" she says as he's walking away. She dismisses Finn's behavior, when she hears Nick and the rest of the cast members call her back to the table. She loves the attention, and for the first time, people actually want to hear what she has to say. She goes back and sits down next to Nick.

When Finn gets back to the table 15 minutes later, he's holding two more drinks in his hand. He sets one of them down on the table and puts his hand on Rachel's shoulder. Rachel isn't paying attention to the contact and keeps talking to Nick. Finn sets his other drink down, and moves to the side of Rachel's chair to pick her up and sit her down on top of him.

"Finn" she yells out. "What are you doing? Not right now" she slaps his hand down when he tries to rest it on her knee and glide it up her skirt. "You're acting inappropriate in front of everyone".

"This is nothing compared to what you did on stage" he says it snarky, and loud enough for most of the table to hear. Rachel's face starts to turn red because of embarrassment and rage. She is so mad at her husband's behavior right now. Everyone at the table tries to look in another direction pretending they didn't just hear that. Rachel slowly gets off of Finn, stands right next to the chair and bends down to try give him a piece of her mind in the most gracious way possible.

"Fondling me in front of a group of people is not the same thing as doing an artistic statement on stage as actors" she tries to convince him. "Finn…you've already had too much to drink. This is not the time or the place to discuss this" she quietly says to him.

"Well I wanted to go home and talk about it, but you needed to go out", he grabs his drink from the table and takes another sip. He's trying to gain back his ownership of his wife. He feels powerless, and can't even talk her into going home with him right after the show. He feels like there's nothing he has to offer her at this point. Nick knows her favorite drink, Nick gets to fondle her breasts, Nick gets to laugh and talk with her, and now Nick gets to rub his hand on her thigh as she sits next to him. _She slaps MY hand away,_ he thinks.

Finn gets up and starts walking towards the door. Rachel follows him grabbing his arm in a forceful way, as they walk together. "We will go home and discuss this, but I don't understand why it has to be on your timetable. What's the big deal about going out on my FIRST night of my Broadway debut to celebrate a little? I've worked too hard not to enjoy this moment, and you are ruining it for me" she says as they both start walking towards the door. Finn breaks contact with Rachel, continues to walk outside and puts his arm out to hail a cab. He doesn't respond to her.

"Finn. Finn. FINN" she yells out and he finally turns around. He just stares at her waiting for her to say more. "Do you even care about my night?" she asks waiting for Finn to answer, but he doesn't.

"Don't you care about my reaction to this x rated musical?" he looks directly in her eyes.

"Don't do this. DON'T. You KNEW about this, what the musical is about..what it involves. Why are you mad NOW?" she asks.

"Because I thought maybe after you were done having sex with Nick, then you would want to be with me" he barely says it without crying.

She decides he's too drunk to reason with, so it's best to let him go. "I AM with you. Nick may have me on stage, but you have me in life Finn. Look, you're drunk, and I'm not going to argue with you here. Just go home and we'll talk about this later" she folds her arms from the cold.

"I'm not going home, I'm going out" he says as the cab pulls up beside him.

Rachel starts to walk towards him with her arms still folded from the New York City cold air. "Finn, I'm not sure going out is such a good idea. You already look pretty wasted" she says in a concerned voice.

"Stop telling me what to do!" as he opens the door to the cab.

"But, where are you going?" she leans down to look inside the cab as the door is still open.

"Some place where they don't care about Tony awards… or talking about building large mantles where to PUT all the Tony awards, and somewhere where the champagne is not just FRENCH" he closes the door.

"Finn" she yells out as she watches the taxi speed pass the intersection and make a left turn at the next block. She has no idea where it's going, but hopes he gets home safe.

When Finn walks through their apartment door, it's already 3:30 in the morning. He takes his shoes off with his feet, and leaves them in the middle of the hallway. He stumbles through the living room and hits the side table with his right foot where Patti sits on top. The table rocks a bit, and he grabs the fish bowl with both his hands. _Whew. Sorry Patti. That was a close one. _He walks towards their bedroom, and opens the door. It's dark, very dark. He tip toes towards the bed using his cell phone as a light, too tired to even attempt to brush his teeth. He unbuckles his pants and throws them down to the ground, and then starts to unbutton his shirt. He can't remember where he left his tie, because he didn't come home with it. _I didn't like that stupid pink tie anyway,_ he thinks to himself. He gets down to his boxers and white tee underneath. Right before he gets into bed, he thinks about those pants lying on the ground in a ball. _Damn Rachel._ He turns around and picks up his pants, folds them nicely and goes and hangs them up in their closet. He didn't use his cell phone this time, so he's having a harder time finding the bed. He finally reaches it, and crawls in. He doesn't realize he got on Rachel's side of the bed, because he's drunk and it's dark. He closes his eyes and turns to his side.

15 minutes later their apartment door cracks open again. It's Rachel. She stayed out a lot later than she wanted. She is torn because she's a married woman and she thinks she should not go out like this, but at the same time she's only 24 and she's the star of a Broadway show. She should be living her life. She sets her keys gently on the table, not to wake Finn, and starts to walk towards the living room. _Shit._ She trips over Finn's shoes and accidently hits the side table that Patti sits on, and she grabs the fish bowl real fast. _Sorry Patti._ If Patti could only talk. Rachel finally gets to the bedroom door and it's open already, so she closes it behind her. She uses her cell phone to find her way to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. When she gets out, she is rubbing her eyes because she's so tired. She shuts the room darkeners, because she figures she'll need those tomorrow, and she walks to her side of the bed. She lifts the covers and slides in. She realizes Finn is awfully close to her side, maybe even a little too close. "Finn" she whispers as she tries to nudge him. He won't budge, and she's too tired to move. She spoons behind him hoping he'll scoot over, and puts her hand around to his chest and grasps on to his t-shirt, as she is dangerously close to the edge.

"Didn't think I'd beat you home" he says without nudging.

"Yeah well, I'm finally getting the attention I've been looking for from everyone at the theatre. I was going to soak up as much as possible" she says still gripping on to Finn. "Believe it or not, they all thought I was a little bossy at first"

"At FIRST? " he makes fun. Rachel lightly punches his back for saying that, and it breaks their tension just a bit. "Are you still mad at me?" he asks like a little kid.

"Yeah, but even though I don't condone your behavior from tonight, doesn't mean I don't understand it. And, just because I'm mad at you doesn't mean I don't love you " she kisses the back of his shoulder. He smiles, because even though he's mad at her too; he feels the same way. "When I got back to the table, my cast mates all thought you were really cute for being jealous. They said to hold on to that guy."

"Do YOU want to hold on to me" he is afraid of her response.

"I'm holding on to you right now" she giggles, referring to how she is literally holding on to him from falling off the bed.

"Can you sing something?" he asks her.

"What?...Now?" she asks him like he's crazy.

"Yeah" he asks again like a little kid._ If I can't make love to my wife, I want to hear the most beautiful voice in the world sing to me_, thinks to himself.

Rachel has no idea what is up with Finn, but she obliges because he's been nothing but close to perfect this last month. She doesn't understand what exactly happened tonight, because he seemed fine right after her performance. She saw that the love of her life was sad and hurt, so she starts to sing. She sings a song to him that he's never heard before, but it's soothing. _Probably some Broadway tune, but she sounds so angelic, _he feels the comfort he was looking for earlier, as he starts to nod off.

They both fall asleep.

**End of Chapter 4**


	5. Remind Me to Thank the Squirrel

**Hey, thanks again for the reviews. I read them all and took them all into consideration. I did already have in mind to answer what was some of your questions, in the later chapters. I thought last chapter was tough…this one was a bit tougher, because I had to have them talk to each other, and not have as much fun. I also figured that since they're married, nothing gets solved over night… My fear is to not make any chapter boring. HOWEVER, I did some foreshadowing, and tried to also add a few elements of surprise; along with trying to keep the humor and playfulness of their relationship that I have created. I think it's going to get fun in the upcoming chapters. Thanks again!**

Rachel wakes up and all she can see is carpet. "Ouch" she rubs her back and realizes she's lying on the floor. _How long have I been laying here like this?_ She asks herself. She pops her head up and sees Finn lying comfortable on her side of the bed. "Ugh" when she realizes he never did move over. She gets up and goes in the bathroom to grab some aspirin. Not only is her back hurting her, but her head is giving her some problems due to the abundance of champagne last night. When she gets back out, she lays on Finn's side and shuts her eyes.

"Finally got up huh? How did the floor feel?" Finn smugly asks as he moves his head up and looks at Rachel briefly.

"Thanks, you knew I was on the floor this whole time? And you didn't even bother to pick me up… or-or- or at least just throw a pillow at my head and I'll get up myself!" as she tries to make him feel bad but he doesn't care. Finn just smiles and turns his head the other way.

"Ohhhh I do NOT feel good" he sighs. Rachel smiles at the satisfaction that he's hung over at least. "Yep, I think I'm going to throw up" he says quickly while getting up and running to the bathroom.

"While you're busy losing the scotch from last night, maybe you can lose some of the attitude as well" she yells at him and smiles. As Finn is throwing up, she hears the buzzer to the door go off in their apartment. She looks at the clock and sees that it's already 1pm. She hurries up and throws a old sweatshirt and shorts on and runs to the window to see if she can see anyone outside of their apartment complex. The buzzer goes off again as she sees a long arm reach for the doorbell, holding a pink tie. _Is that Finn's tie?_ She buzzes the person in and looks through the peep hole. A tall blond woman comes walking up the last few steps holding what appears to be Finn's tie. _Oh this should be interesting, _Rachel ponders while she's starting to get pissed off before the woman even approaches their door.

"Hi, I'm here to drop Vince's tie off" the woman hands the tie to Rachel. Rachel is really confused because she doesn't know a Vince, but she's fairly certain that's her husband's tie.

"Vince?" she wonders.

"Yeah, I think that's his name. It was awfully loud in the bar last night. He came in around midnight…real tall, and has this weird half smile that he does when he gets nervous", as she popped her head in looking around their apartment.

"That's….him" she nods nervously, smiling. "How did you know where he lives?" she asked scared of the answer.

"I walked him home last night. He took his tie off at the bar and he gave it to me. He said he wanted me to have it, but I felt bad because of the meaning behind it. I figured I'd just return it today after he's had time to think about it…and is a lot…well, less drunk." she laughed.

"MEANING behind it? " she asked, getting more scared of the answer.

"Yeah, his dead wife bought it him for him when he got his new job or something. I guess she passed away a few months ago…I feel really bad for him. Anyway, here's his tie" she hands the tie to Rachel. "Are you the cleaning lady?" she says as she looks Rachel up and down in her shorts and sweatshirt, that's cut in a V at the neck line.

"That's just one of the many things I do here" she says taking the tie. "Thanks, I'll give it to him" she starts to shut the door, and the lady puts her arm out to stop it.

"Wait! Can I say hi to him?" she asks looking around the apartment for him.

"Sure! As soon as the divorce papers are final" Rachel sarcastically says as she slams the door in her face. "Ohhhhh …VINCE" Rachel yells out as she starts to walk towards their bedroom. The bed is empty, but she hears the shower running. Rachel barges in the bathroom and the glass is all steamed up from the hot shower. Rachel marches to the glass shower door and slides it open with force.

"Hey!" Finn says in shock, but then sees the fun opportunities in his head and smiles. "So is this you making up with me? I'm not feeling that great, but I think I got rid of it all just 5 minutes ago. Don't worry, I brushed my teeth" he motions for her to come in the shower

"A squirrel came by just now and said you dropped something on your way home last night" she shows him the tie. Finn looks dumbfounded, because he truly doesn't remember in that moment what happened to his tie. He really doesn't remember talking with a squirrel either, but it's possible because he was that THAT drunk. And judging by Rachel's face, he's certain this is not going to turn out well. He gives his half smile hoping that he's being paranoid.

"I didn't realize I dropped it. Glad you found it. What a nice squirrel, I'll have to get him a nut basket for Christmas, thanks! he smiles and tries to pretend she's not mad, and really hopes that there is a such thing as a talking squirrel. "Why are you staring at me like that? You look live you've seen a ghost" he tries to disregard her anger.

"Apparently, it's you who is seeing a ghost Finn…since I'm DEAD!" she throws the tie at him in the shower and marches out of the bathroom. Finn hurries up and picks up his tie so it doesn't get ruined, and jumps out of the shower, grabbing a towel and follows after her.

"Rachel …Rachel wait!" he shouts as he enters the living room. "What are you talking about? He looks at her waiting for her response.

"You honestly don't remember do you?" she puts her hands on her hip. "You don't remember going to a bar last night and telling some blond bimbo that I'm dead…and then giving her your tie I bought you?" she almost looks sad. Suddenly, the events of last night start to trickle in Finn's memory and the dead thing comes back to his memory.

_Fuuuuuuuuck, _Finn thinks to himself. "Look Rachel…I was mad and jealous last night. I wasn't thinking clearly" he starts talking with his hands.

"So you killed me?" she yells back. "You couldn't just flirt like a normal guy mad at his wife? You had to make me dead in your fantasy TOO?" she doesn't think it's normal to flirt either, but she was mad he even went the extra mile to make a more elaborate story; like her being dead. "I mean…you saying I'm dead makes me think that maybe you wish I was" she starts using her hands now too.

"Come on RACH…you know I don't want you dead. I was mad ok? I started to feel like our marriage was dead after watching you and Nick be the perfect, in love; Romeo and Juliet couple of the century!" he looks up at the ceiling. "So I got some attention from some nice blond…I MEAN, just some chick that I don't care about, but was interested in me. I just wanted attention that's all…that's all I was looking for." He looks back at her. "Remember, I wanted to go home with you last night, alone" he said.

"You're not a dog Finn! You are a grown man…and I give you plenty of attention. I think that's the problem, because you got nothing but undivided attention from me for the last 8 years we've been together. And now, I finally got something where people need my attention just as much. I can't be everything to everyone." She yells.

"Rachel…Fine, I'll admit I'm looking for attention, but did you ever realize perhaps it's ALSO because you're not satisfying me as your husband on TOP of all of this?" he starts to pace as he holds on to his towel. "I mean, I'm going to crack. It's not JUST the sex. It's you wanting to be with ME" he stops to sit on the couch. Rachel's eyes widen because now it's irking her that his wet towel is on the couch. She gets distracted for a second, but realizes this is not the time to nag about something so petty.

"So what was that last night then? With the girl?" she asks calmly.

"It was nothing. I went to a bar, and let out my anger to a stranger. You were getting so much attention from Nick, and he was putting his hand on your thigh…I was losing control. I wanted to go out and get what you were getting" he said. "But nothing sexual!" he admits. "I didn't even touch her, or vice versa. It was just a way for me to vent" he said.

Rachel goes over and sits on next to him on the couch. She puts her hand on his thigh. "I'm sorry Finn" she looks in his eyes. "I can't say I'm happy about what you did last night with me and the cast, and also with the blond" she rolls her eyes. "But, you're right. I think I need to realize that I have to stop thinking of you as JUST my husband who wants sex. You are my best friend, my partner, AND my lover." she says. "I didn't realize taking away our intimacy is more than just sex to you" she sighs.

"Does this mean I can go back to being your lover?" he puts his hand on top of hers and smiles. Realizing he might have gone backwards with that statement, since he just tried to convince her that it wasn't JUST the sex.

"Well, first of all…you're not completely off the hook for your behavior last night in front of my cast mates. And you're certainly not off the hook for your little stroll home with the blond last night" she says.

"Rach…come on! I told you it was nothing, and I explained why I told her you were dead" he pleads.

"I know Finn, and I trust you. But, we need to figure out where to go from here. And, I really had a great time up on stage last night…"

"What part was the GOOD time?" Finn interrupts Rachel, hoping she didn't mean the simulated sex scene was good.

"I mean, I LOVE performing on stage…and as you can see, it's a very intense musical" she says as she continues to keep her hand on his thigh. "I need some time to figure this all out" she leans down and looks close in his face.

"Well, I suppose my reaction lately hasn't given me much of an advantage here" he sighs.

"There's no such thing as an advantage Finn. We're partners, and no one is trying to win…or lose." She takes her hand off his thigh and places it on his cheek and she kisses him gently.

"Well I feel like I'm losing….losing YOU Rachel" Finn frowns and kisses her cheek back.

"What can I do to assure you that this has nothing to do with you? This is about me trying to discover this part, and I just need some space." She asks intently. "What if I offer you some sort of …I don't know…an incentive" she looks at him in an alluring way. Finn's eyes look like they're ready to pop out of his head. _A blow job? A hand job? Anything where you do some work and I can rest my hand! _, he starts praying she's going to do something on the couch right now.

"Uh…what do you have in mind?" he asks.

"Well, I realize I have been asking a lot from you. On top of having to go see the musical, and this is probably a bruise to your ego I'm sure. So, the musical ends its brief stint in 3 months…how about for 3 months after that" she sighs…."I'll let you have your way with….me" she hesitantly says, wondering if she's going to regret this bargain later.

"WAY with you…like I am in charge of your body for 3 months straight?" that half smile starts to turn into a whole one. Then Finn thinks she just cheated him out of a month. "Wait a minute…3 months PLUS the month of rehearsals when you stopped the sex. I should get FOUR months" as he puts up four fingers on his hand.

"Yeah, I would have made it four, but then you had to go and flirt with the blond and make me dead" she says craftily. "So you lose a month. Sorry" she shrugs. "And also…IN CHARGE? You don't own me Finn…I just meant that I'll have to do any sexual favor you ask of me…REASONABLY speaking" she nods. Finn knows what Rachel likes to do in bed, and what she doesn't…so he's not going to make her feel uncomfortable. But, visions of handcuffs definitely dance in his head.

"Deal" Finn smiles feeling like he won something. Rachel puts her hand out, and they shake on it.

"Can you please do me a favor and go finish your shower?" she asks. Finn's face peps up thinking she wants to possibly join him.

"Ok" he gets up and starts to walk towards the bathroom. "You're not coming?" he looks at her and then points to the bathroom with his eyes.

"No, I just really needed you to get off the couch with your wet towel" she said as she gets up and walks towards the kitchen. Finn frowns, but then is happy things settled down a bit. He still is not happy about the no sex thing, but he thinks he'll just have to suffer through this. He knows when Rachel decides to do something, there's no turning back. He is grateful she acknowledged how tough this is on him, to watch the musical and be celibate with her, and she just offered him a 3 month pass to every man's fantasy. _A free 3 month pass on the Rachel Ride._ He's also worried that she's doing this just to shut him up the next 3 months…_I still don't know how I'm going to handle seeing Nick next time either. _

Rachel is still worried Finn's going to lose his cool again, but she's hoping this 3 month sex pass will calm him down a bit. _I can't believe he almost turned it into 4 months, I should have known Finn was smart to figure that out, _she thinks to herself as she's contemplating how to tell him that they're thinking of testing out the market in Chicago, just 3 months after it's done with its short run in New York. _Ok, so the musical ends the day before Christmas, and then we go to Chicago in April for 3 months. Oh, he's going to KILL me, but it might be easier since I'll be out of state. _

"I'm leaving" Rachel walks in the bedroom to find Finn, who's lying down in their bed. "Are you still not feeling well?" she asks him.

"I'm getting there…I'm trying to take a nap before work" he says . Finn has to do the news tonight, so he won't be able to see tonight's performance. She walks over to him on the bed and gives him a kiss, and Finn grabs her arm and pulls her down on top of him.

"Finn!" she screams out as he tackles on top of her. "You never give up do you?" she shakes her head in anger.

"You said no sex, you never said anything about wrestling" he said. He lays on top of her and kisses her deeply. She allows him, and likes it. Something about a post fight kiss always arouses her. She breaks the kiss to grab some air.

"The problem is, when you and I wrestle…it always leads to sex" she giggles. She rolls out of his embrace and stands on her feet. Finn just looks at her as she starts to walk out the door.

"See you later" he yells out to her.

"Bye Vince" she throws her hand up in the air and waves goodbye.

Finn is surprisingly getting used to this new thing they got going. He gets excited, she allows him to get to at least second base, and then she pulls away leaving him with blue balls. He realizes second base is better than no base though. _3 month sex pass, 3 month sex pass, 3 month sex pass_, he chants to himself trying to get through this.

When Rachel gets home, it's well past 2 in the morning. Finn is sound asleep, and she tip toes in their bedroom so she can get ready for bed. She gets to her side of the bed, and is relieved that Finn is not there. _Thank God, I had a feeling he might do that to mess with me again. _She yawns and starts to fall asleep. Finn rolls over and sees Rachel just got home.

"Did you go out again?" Finn asks.

"Just for a little bit…we had one of the producers come see the show and he wanted to take us all out" she replies hoping that's the last of his questions.

"Ohh, so this isn't a daily thing?" he wonders.

"No Finn…I can't afford it, monetarily AND physically. Come on, it's just day 2…we're still dealing with all the hype. And do you care if I did?" now she's mad she asked that because she knows this is going to be another 5 minutes, and she really wants to fall asleep.

"No, I mean, I don't want to be one of those husbands that complains when their wife goes out. I just…nevermind. I'm tired, you're tired…let's just go to sleep" he really wanted to finish his sentence. _I just don't think you and Nick need to spend social time along with all the hours you put in rehearsing._ _What if you fall in love with this guy, because you have box office chemistry, or stage chemistry, and now champagne drinking chemistry._

Rachel leans over and kisses Finn on the mouth.

"What's that for" Finn asks.

"I want you to be the first person I kiss everyday, and the last person I kiss everyday" she moves her hand through his hair gently as she smiles.

_I want you to be the ONLY person you kiss, how about that?_ Finn thinks to himself, but of course won't say it. He realizes his behavior hasn't been stellar this weekend, and she seems like she's trying. _3 month pass, 3 month pass, 3 month pass._

Rachel rolls over to the other side passes out. Finn, lying on his back, stares at the wall wondering if Nick's hand was on her thigh again tonight.

**END OF CHAPTER 5**


	6. Vegans Suck!

_**Thanks everyone as always! Here's the next chapter…I'm trying to catch up to the holidays, so we can follow along as we are going through Christmas and New years.**_

_2 weeks before Thanksgiving…_

"Hey guys. Come on over here, I got to tell you something" one of the producers of the musical says to Rachel and Nick. They both look at him and walk over to the first row of seats in the auditorium.

"What it is?" Rachel asks worried that something is wrong. She looks at Nick worried, and then looks back at the producer.

"Well" the producer smiles and looks at them with glee "I want to be the FIRST to congratulate you and tell you the great news!" Rachel's eyes widen and grabs on to Nick's hand. "You two are going to sing on a float at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade this year." he shouts!

Rachel screams with excitement, because when she was a little girl, that's all she used to imagine: Her and Bernadette Peters singing a Broadway tune together, while gliding down Park Ave in a cutely designed float on Thanksgiving morning and basking in the holiday spirit. "I-I-I am speechless!" she yells

"We haven't decided what you guys will sing yet; probably a holiday tune. But we know you two can sing anything" he says as he pats them both on the back and walks out taking a call on his cell.

"Well, it looks like we're going out tonight after the musical to celebrate" Nick smiles as he's holding on to Rachel's hand. Rachel smiles back thinking about all those times on her elliptical staring at a picture of the parade; thinking it was one of her goals she needs to achieve.

Rachel runs to her dressing room to call Finn and tell him the great news. She gets his voicemail and leaves a message. "FINN….I'm on a float. 'nuff said. I'll see you tonight!" and then she hangs up.

Finn rushes out their apartment door to hail a cab. He left his phone on the table near Patti, and never bothered to listen to the messages. This is his 11th time seeing the musical, and he's not getting used to it. Although, he figured out how to sneak his own Jr. Mints in the theatre, because they're 4 dollars cheaper at Walgreens. When he gets to his seat, he sees Rachel right before they go on stage, and she winks at him and lips 'I love you' to him. He smiles and blows her a kiss. He knows he only has a month left and they'll one day laugh about all this. _Finn Jr. would never laugh about this, but I'm sure someone will find this funny,_ he thinks to himself.

When the musical ends, he finds his way to the back and sees Rachel. She hugs and kisses him, and he smiles back. "Sooooo, you didn't call me back" she smiles as she's waiting for his response.

"Yeah, I was rushing and then left my phone at…"

"Rachel" one of her cast mates interrupts…"They're really asking for you out there and it's cold" one of her cast mates says referring to the fans waiting outside in the ally of the stage door.

"Finn…let me go say hi to the fans. Can you meet me at the bar?" she asks him holding on to both hands.

"That same bar we went to last time we went out?" he asks with little enthusiasm. He hasn't gone out with the cast since opening night. A few times Rachel has, but he figured it was best to just let her go alone, and she didn't disagree.

"That's the one…we're going to celebrate!" she said kissing his cheek. Finn watches her walk away having no idea what they're celebrating for. He still has this little glimpse of hope she's always referring to sexual favors, but his dreams never come true.

When Rachel arrives to the bar, she spots her cast mates at their usual table and heads over. She looks for Finn but doesn't see him. "Hi guys!" Rachel smiles as she sits down next to Nick.

Finn is standing at the bar talking to the bartender. This time, he's drinking a Miller Lite, opting out of the double scotch this time. He spots Rachel sitting at the table with her cast mates and Nick, so he bites his lip and walks over there. "Hey guys" Finn waves at everyone at the table. He's hoping they don't necessarily remember what happened last time he was in this situation.

"Hi Finn…haven't seen you since opening night. What happened, did they run out of scotch?" he laughs at his own joke, and everyone at the table follows. Finn gives him a look of death, and starts to open his mouth. Rachel recognizes his anger and interrupts Finn by grabbing on to his hand and whispering in his ear.

"Finn…don't. He's just trying to break the ice of what happened last time" she tries to convince Finn.

_Oh, I'll break the ice, when I ram his head into it outside, _Finn thinks to himself. Finn realizes that he'll be defeated if he allows Nick to get the best of him though, so he takes a sip of his beer and smiles. "Can I get you something to drink Rachel?" he looks down at her. She looks at her seat at the table and sees a glass of champagne that Nick put there for her, and looks back at Finn.

"Yes, a glass of Moet would be nice, thank you" she smiles at him and watches him walk to the bar. She quickly downs her glass of champagne from Nick and throws the glass under the table as if it never existed. When Finn walks back to the table, he wraps his right arm around her from the back, and hands her the glass of champagne. "I asked for the very best FRENCH champagne" he emphasizes. She smiles to oblige him, but frankly she's getting scared.

"Thanks…honey" she hesitantly grabs the glass as she kisses him chastely.

"So Finn" Nick says looking up at him as he's sitting on a chair. "What do you think of your better half starring on a float in the Thanksgiving parade this year?" he smiles waiting for his answer. Finn looks puzzled and looks down at Rachel. She remembered she didn't get a chance to tell him.

"Oh yeah, my message! I was calling to tell you that I'm going to be in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade with Nick on a float! Isn't that exciting?" she smiles and waits for Finn's response.

Finn looks back and forth at the both of them, then finally speaks. "Is the parade in Ohio, because that's where we're going for Thanksgiving" he is not excited at all.

"Well, it's a really big deal for any Broadway show to get recognized that day. And it's something that I've dreamed about being in since I was a little girl" she answers calmly. "I mean, maybe it's time we start to celebrate holidays here anyway. This is our home now" she grabs his hand. "And besides, don't you have to work? I mean, you work all the holidays" she asked.

"Well, I'm working Christmas, since you'll be here finishing up the musical, but I had to beg for Thanksgiving off. I have to work extra hours in the editing room for them in return. I figured you would ALSO take off and we'd spend a few days ALONE, and with family" he tries to convince her. "I already planned for us to leave that Wednesday night right after your performance."

"They have Turkey in New York you know Finn" Nick interrupts their conversation. Finn shoots him a look.

Rachel walks over to Finn to intercept any idea he may have of physically attacking him, because he looks like he's going to kill him. "Nick is probably the male version of me, so I can handle him" she whispers. Suddenly a light bulb clicked in Finn's head, _a male version of Rachel is Kurt, _he starts to think.

"Is he gay?" he asks. He actually can't believe he never asked before, because he avoids all talk of this play and Nick…and he's also worried of the answer to that question. He so desperately wants him to be gay. Rachel looks at him for a few seconds, like she's trying to calculate her answer. She guides him away from the table so they can talk alone.

"Would it matter if he isn't?" she asks.

"Well, yeah. I mean, it's like when you and Kurt go shopping together and share the same dressing room" he says.

"That was ONE time, and that's because we were fighting over this crew neck at Ann Taylor Loft, and we had to see who wore it better" she cutely tries to defend herself.

"Yeah, but he's gay, so I can care less if you two showered together for all I care" he starts to smile thinking Nick's gay. "Sooo" he looks down at her, "Is he?" he prays.

Rachel takes a deep breath…"No, he's not" she says softly looking at his chest.

"Oh" Finn says disappointed.

Finn stares at Rachel wondering why bad news just keeps happening to them. _Ok, me…the bad news happens to me,_ Finn thinks. _First, Thanksgiving plans ruined, and now I had a small glimpse of hope that Nick might be gay, and that was taken away from me. _I mean, who the hell is straight on Broadway? _I bet if I hit on him, he would cave into me. Maybe he's mean to me because he really likes ME, not Rachel,_ he starts to think. "Order me another beer Rach" he says smiling.

After Finn goes his drink, they both held hands walking back to the table. Finn decides he's going to make a move. He unbuttons the first few top buttons on his shirt and leans into Nick. "Hey man, I want to congratulate you on the Parade thing" he puts his hand out to shake Nick's hand. Nick shakes his hand back and looks puzzled, because Finn's behavior totally did a 180. "So, uhhhh, do you like Coldplay?" Finn asks him enthusiastically. Rachel gives him the most awkward look she's ever given, wondering what the hell he's doing.

"Uhhh…I suppose" Nick reluctantly responds. He starts to inch away from Finn, because he's starting to scare him.

"Or how about the movie 'Maid in Manhatten'…do you like that? Maybe you can come over one night and we can share a snuggie and watch it." Finn asks as he puts his hand on his shoulder and starts to rub it. Nick looks at Finn scared, and then stares at Rachel hoping she does something.

"Ok FINN" she shouts out and interrupts their love fest. "Let's go shall we?" he grabs his hand. Finn snaps out of how ridiculous he's acting and obliges. Rachel says good night to everyone, and then kisses Nick on the cheek.

"Ohh Finn" Nick yells out as they start walking towards the door. Finn turns around. "I may like Coldplay…but I'm not 40, I'm not a virgin…and I'm definitely NOT gay" he winks in his direction, then turns around and looks at everyone at the table. "What a fool" as they all laugh. "At least be original" he remarks to the table.

Finn does what he promised he wouldn't do….he lost his cool. He turns around and heads over to Nick's direction, smiles and then punches him right in the eye. Nick falls back in his chair like in a movie, and everyone gasps for air at the scene. Rachel is so dumbfounded at what just happened, she can't even react. She stands there paralyzed at the scene of Nick falling over, as everyone rushes to his aid. Finn calmly turns around and walks back towards Rachel.

"Come on, let's go" Finn says to Rachel as he grabs her hand and starts to walk out with her. She let him guide her towards the door, when she realized she has to work with Nick, and he is her friend.

"Wait….Finn!" she pulls away. "I have to make sure Nick is ok" she yells. Finn gives her a look, as if he doesn't understand why she cares.

"Fine, but you have until I hail a cab, and then I'm gone" he yells back at her as she goes back in the bar to check on Nick. The cab comes 5 minutes later…Finn gets in the cab and gives Rachel a few more minutes. She doesn't come back, so he tells the cab driver to leave.

When Rachel finally gets back outside to check on Finn, she realizes he's gone. She throws her arms up looking at the sky wondering how she's going to balance the two men in her life. She hails her own cab and gets in, and tells the cab driver to take her home.

Finn's cab pulled up at their apartment and he got out. He started to walk towards the door, and then stopped in his tracks. He turned in the direction of the bar near their house, and thought of walking towards it. He took a few steps in that direction, and then stopped. "Go home" he said. _That blond is not going to solve my problems…having Rachel will solve my problem, _he thinks to himself. He turns around and walks back to their front door of their complex.

Rachel's cab pulls up as he's fidgeting with his keys at the door. She throws the driver money and jumps out. "Finn!" she yells at him and jogs to the door. "You didn't wait for me!" she hits his shoulder.

"Why? You ran back towards your lover on stage" he barks back and finally gets in the door. They both start to walk up the stairs to their apartment.

"STAGE is the operative word Finn" she bites back. "He's not my real lover! And I'm so SICK of you making a smart ass remark about us" she starts to get heated up. "I may have ran back to him, but at the end of the night…I ran to YOU" she throws her arms up not understanding why he's not getting this.

"What does an opera have to do with this?" he asks puzzled. She ignores his stupidity and walks straight through their door and heads to their bedroom. He goes the opposite direction and heads to the fridge to get a beer. When she comes back out in sweats and t-shirt, he looks her up and down.

"Ohhh HONEY…you shouldn't HAVE. You put on these sexy clothes just for ME?" he snidely and sarcastically remarks. She rolls her eyes, wondering how it got to this. He used to make fun of her when she put on sweats at the end of the night, but he used to find it sexy…_or he used to think so,_ she thinks. Rachel starts to act irrational. She takes her arms and throws her t-shirt off and exposes her naked breasts to Finn in the kitchen.

"THERE….you happy now?" she shouts. "Is this sexy enough for you? HUH!" she looks at him and takes both her hands and grabs her breasts forcefully and shakes them.

"Yeah, let me look at your tits thanks! Just like EVERYONE ELSE in New York City!" he shouts right back at her. "Can't wait for your dads to see you in this play…or my MOM? God, I can't even fathom what my mom's response will be" he said. "I suppose you can tell them on Thanksgiving…but OH WAIT…you can't, because you won't be there" he tries to make her feel bad.

"Finn…we can still spend Thanksgiving together! I don't get what you're so angry about? I do the parade, then I'm off the entire day. We can spend a nice quiet time here in our apartment " she asks.

"You don't eat turkey Rachel! You are no fun on Thanksgiving! You don't eat any food that makes Thanksgiving special and fun. Vegans SUCK at Thanksgiving!" he cries out.

"Finn, holidays are not about food" she grabs his arm.

"Uhhh Thanksgiving is all about the food! And don't you want to see our family?" he can't understand why she doesn't want to spend a holiday with the family.

"Yes, but this profession that I chose…is unconventional. And so is yours Mr. Sportscaster" she looks at him. "We have to adjust to this life together, or I can't adjust at all" she pleads for him to understand.

"I'm going home for Thanksgiving" he says as he walks to the living room and sits on the couch. "I already took it off, and you do what you want" he sighs. Rachel grabs her sweatshirt from the floor and threw it back on. She walked over to the couch and sat next to him.

"I'm glad Finn. You should go then and have fun eating all the meat and dairy products you can. I will stay here because this is my dream. But I want you to watch it on TV with the family and be proud, not angry." She smiles as she fights back a tear. "I love you, and I promise I will be thinking of you the entire time." She says as he keeps staring forward.

"I guess we'll need to learn how to be apart once and awhile" he says, also fighting back a tear. "It's just….everything piled all at once. I would never want you to stop following a dream because I need you there watching me eat turkey I suppose" he tries to take a step back and rationally think what's going on. He turns to look at her, "It's really the vision of you and Nick sharing a holiday. He's already sharing my wife's body, and I think that's what's bothering me"

"I told you before…he may be sharing my body, but he is not sharing what's inside of me. YOU are what's inside of me…"

"Well, I haven't really been inside of you in awhile" he cuts her off rolling his eyes.

Rachel laughs because she knows Finn's humor. "I meant emotionally. I take you everywhere I go, and eventually you will physically be inside me, no worries" she grabs his arm and snuggles it. Finn snuggles back.

_The next day…_

Rachel arrives at the theatre, and one of the producers calls her in his office.

"Rachel, I'm going to make this fast and to the point." He says leaning back in his chair. "I think it's best if your husband doesn't come to anymore of the shows. I can't have any drama here. We are getting great reviews, and you and Nick are fabulous out there together. I need the public to think you guys are really together…or at least hope you are. If you have a jealous husband showing up and physically abusing our other co-star, then what do you think the audience will think?" he leans in closer to his desk.

"You're right." She unfortunately agrees and nods. "Finn is a really great guy, and he supports me 100%, but he IS jealous of Nick." She says. "He completely supports the musical though" she pleads.

"I know he does. I've met him, and I think he's proud of your performance. I can't have him around anymore though. You have to understand. With the type of musical we have, there are expectations that audiences and fans have of our cast. They love the story between Wendla and Melchior, and want to believe you and Nick are those characters." He keeps going on. "Now, you and Nick will be performing a nice holiday love song on our float. I want people to fall in love with you guys" he demands.

"Ok" Rachel nods faking a smile.

"I know you are capable of feeling a song, because that's the entire reason we hired you." He says clicking his pen.

"What are we singing?" she asks.

"You're singing a song from 'White Christmas', 'I've got my Love to Keep Me Warm'" he says. "And I want people to think you are in love! Got it?" he says

"Yes" she nods and walks out of his office. _Finn is gonna love this song_, she sarcastically thinks

Later that night when Rachel got home, she was hoping Finn was sleeping already. She didn't want to have to tell him he's banned from seeing anymore performances. She decided she's going to make it sound like she's doing him a favor. _It's like in the 'Wife's Guide to Keeping Things from Your Husband handbook' _she has learned throughout her marriage_._

She gets to the bedroom and sees that Finn is definitely out. She smiles and tip toes around, never being so quiet in her life. She quietly slips into bed and rolls over. She hears Finn ruffle the sheets, _please be asleep, please be asleep, please be asleep._

"Hey babe" he grunts as he puts his arm on her shoulder. She's facing the other direction, and realized there's no way she can pretend to be asleep. "I thought you are supposed to kiss my every night?" he asks.

She rolls over and gives him a kiss. "I'm sorry, you're right. I thought you were sleeping" she rolls back to the other side.

"No, I wanted to tell you I'll be at your next performance on Wednesday, before I leave for Lima" he smiles. He's hoping he's scoring points by going as many times as he can, and of course…trying to keep his cool.

"You know what Finn? I was thinking…maybe you don't have to go to them anymore." She rolls back around to face him. She puts her hand on his face and looks deeply in his eyes, hoping he gets lost in hers and doesn't get mad.

"Why?" he looks kind of sad.

Rachel doesn't have an answer, and she really has no idea how to answer. She kisses him deeply and throws her arms around his head. She grabs on to his hair and pulls it gently. Finn has no idea what she's doing, but he does not stop her. He kisses her back and dances his tongue in front of her teeth, and she allows access. They are making out like mad, as Finn's hands start to travel down her body and up her t-shirt. Both his hands are holding on to her breasts like he's hanging on for life. Her hands start to travel down his shirt, and she starts to play with the bottom, trying to pull it off of him. She brings her head down to his stomach, and starts to kiss her way up to his chest. She pulls his shirt over his head, and he throws it off of him.

"Finn" she says out of breath as she keeps kissing his chest. "I…just …want to …keep my work….and our life…separate …I think" she says in between kissing him. She lifts her head to look at his face, "This way, I come home to you every night and tell you about my day, and we can share some intimate time."

"If we do this every night, then I'm down" he smiles and brings her up to him. He kisses her and starts to pull her shirt off. She helps him.

"We can play Finn, but we can't do much else" she breaks the kiss and tries to remind him. He smiles and starts to kiss her neck and just under her ear, as she lay on top of him moving her hands up and down his chest.

"I know" he sighs. "I'm just glad I got to second base" he said. He begins to keep kissing her, and they fool around for awhile. She can feel how hard he is under her, as she continues to grind on top of him. She knows she's going to have to eventually get off before he explodes, so she slowly starts to slow the movements down and she rolls off of him. "Ahhhh" Finn says in anger. He looks up at the ceiling and sighs.

"I know baby...I know. " she says kissing his chest. He gets up and goes into the bathroom and she smiles. She knows this is the way to get him to agree to anything. When he returns back to bed, he snuggles with Rachel.

"Ok, I feel better now" he said holding Rachel in his arms.

**End of Chapter 6**

….next chapter : Thanksgiving Day!

Note: I was referring to "The 40 year Old Virgin" when Finn was trying to determine if Nick is gay. It just seems like Finn would actually make those assumptions from the movie. Oh, and there will be tons of sexual angst in the next chapter…I promise. I see now why people have to write "fillers" to get to the next part of the story.


	7. Thanksgiving Day

_**Hey guys. I had this chapter done before I read the reviews, so we'll see what you think. I always consider feedback, but I'll keep it the way I wrote it I think, because I like it. I did a lot of foreshadowing the first few chapters, so I want to stay true to that, so I hope ya'll pick up on that. Thanks again for all your feedback. To the few that might not like the story or the characters, I apologize. I'm writing this for me and for you. I figured it's always fun to have a fresh new, fun story. All I can say in defense of the characters: they're married. It's not always lovey-dovey, and I'm not going to write 5 chapters of Finn or Rachel chasing each other, and then they find each other and they live happily ever after. I'm writing about them already in love, and in this particular incident, Rachel is starring in a role for the first time, and she's being tough on Finn. IMO, they both have good points, but how do they get through that together? I'm trying to keep their arguing fun and entertaining, because usually in a relationship, you know how to push each other's buttons. Perhaps someone can read it differently then I intend to write it, and maybe that's my lack of writing skills.**_

_**Also, I'm trying to stay true to character…and Rachel IS tough, and can be selfish. Doesn't mean she's not a good person, which is why I try to show both sides of what we love and hate about her. Finn…same thing. He's shown us on the show that he can be an ass, but then be really sweet. I hope you don't mind the explanation, just wanted to answer any concerns that some of you might have expressed through reviews. I hope you enjoy it. I think a marriage is about compromise. Married couples fight…but the great thing about being married, and if you are TRULY IN LOVE (like our couple) …they learn not to go to bed angry, because life is too short. Thanks! **_

_Wednesday morning before Thanksgiving…_

Finn wakes up from the noise of the blender. _She's making her shake already_? he turns to look at the clock and it's 8:30am. _Crap, I got to be on the road soon. _Finn lifts his body up and puts his feet on the floor. He rubs the back of his neck with his hand and stands up. He walks out of the bedroom and sees Rachel in the kitchen putting together a whole bunch of snacks together. "Hey, good morning" he walks over and kisses her on her forehead.

"Mornin' babe" she smiles at him and continues to spread mayonnaise on a sandwich.

"What are you doing?" he asked as he took a potato chip out of one of sandwich size Ziploc bags she has on the counter.

"Those chips are for your lunch" she says and walks over to the blender to turn it off and pour her morning flax seed drink. "I got up early to make you a lunch and some snacks for your car ride today" she continues to put his sandwich together.

"Thanks!" he smiles at her. "I'm glad I heard the blender, because I wanted to leave by 10 this morning, it's about a 9 hour drive" he says. He gets behind her and hugs her and kisses the back of her neck. She continues to finish packing all his food while he starts nibbling on her ear.

"Finn! Stop it, come on. I got to get you on the road here" she pulls away to put his packed food in the fridge. "We have a cooler somewhere don't we?" she asked and walked back over to him and gave him a kiss.

"Yeah" he looks at her provocatively. "It's at the bottom of the pantry on the floor" he watches her walk to the pantry and bend down and look for the cooler. The cooler is not there, he did it on purpose to watch her bend down in the tight Capri work out pants that she has on. _Ohhh yeah, good one Finn_, he said smiling to himself wondering how long she'll stay down there.

"Finn…I don't see it" as she ruffles through the things they have on the floor. She gets up and turns around and sees Finn laughing and smiling. "Finn. It's not down there is it?" she nods her head side to side and puts her hands on her hips. "You are so childish" she starts to laugh and throw a towel at him she had on her shoulder.

"The cooler is in the closet, I'll get it later" he said as he walked over to her and pushed his body against hers. He hugged her and held on tight. She hugged back and laid her head on his chest and sighed.

"Oh Finn, I'm going to miss you. I just realized tonight is the first time that we will sleep apart from each other. And, we'll be apart the whole weekend" she frowned.

"I know. You have to do what's good for you Rachel. Just like you said, we may not be physically together, but I'll still be inside of you or something. Although, I'm still really confused how I can be inside of you" he looks off trying to understand what she meant last week.

"I know Finn" she smiles. "I love you" she breaks away from his embrace. "Go take a shower and get ready, and I will get the cooler. You have to get on the road to be there at a decent hour" she says slapping his butt as she walks away.

"Are you trying to rush me out of here?" he asked her as he was on his way to the bathroom.

"No, but I know you need to go, and I need to get to the theatre earlier today to rehearse for tomorrow" she said as she walks in the closet to get the cooler. Finn doesn't say anything and goes to take a shower. He is sad he's not going with Rachel, but he's relieved to go home for a few days and see the family. He can't wait to eat a Thanksgiving meal, and just hang out in Lima and go shopping, or catch a movie with some old friends. He also figured it's a good time to go shopping for Rachel for Hanukkah and Christmas. Since they celebrate both, Finn always buys her one gift for Hanukkah, and one gift for Christmas. She does the same.

The other 7 days of Hanukkah, Finn tries to get away with homemade gifts, like the time he gave her a certificate for "One free hair wash in the shower – given by Finn Hudson" and there was a disclaimer at the bottom saying that it must be used in the next 5 minutes or the barer of this gift must pay 1 Million dollars. _Yeah that was a good one,_ Finn thinks as he lathers his body up. He starts to relax thinking maybe it's good for the marriage to take a few days off. He'll get to see his baby on television, and have everyone else in Lima jealous, knowing that he's married to that beautiful Broadway star.

He gets out of the shower and starts to get dressed and pack his clothes. Rachel had everything laid out for him to wear for the next few days already. He didn't ask her to do it, but she insisted. As he walks out of the bedroom with his suitcase, Rachel had his cooler packed and ready. He smiles and goes to give Rachel a hug. Right before they breakaway, the buzzer to their apartment door goes off. Rachel's face turns pale. Finn notices and lets whoever it is in. He starts to look at Rachel suspiciously, as he goes to the door to open it.

"Hi Finn" says Nick as we walks right passed him and into their apartment. Rachel just stands in the kitchen not saying anything.

"What are you doing here Nick?" he asks not very happy right now.

"Rachel and I are going to work out together and then go into work early to practice for tomorrow" he said as he walked passed Finn. "I told her this morning since I was in the neighborhood, I would meet her here and we would take the subway together."

Finn shot Rachel a look. "Finn, I didn't think it was a big deal" she said walking over to Finn to assure him there's nothing more than what Nick just said.

"Yeah, well you sure picked a funny time for him to come over to our place." He shakes his head.

"I've been here before Finn" he smiles back.

"What?" Finn looks confused. Rachel 's eyes are twice the size now.

"We sometimes work out together before we go in Finn. I've never told you because I didn't think it was a big deal." She tries to explain. "It's a good way to talk about our parts and the musical. It's such an intense role we both have." She grabs onto his arm.

"Finn…really. It's just working out. I mean, she sometimes needs a spotter" he winks at him.

Finn smiles back. He walks over to Nick and looks in his face. He smiles. And then….he punches him….again! Nick flies back and grabs on to the table he ran into.

"Finn!" Rachel yells. "What is your problem!" she goes over to Nick to see if he's ok….again.

"I guess you needed a spotter for that" he says as he grabs his stuff and walks out of their apartment.

Finn rolls into Lima around 7:30pm. Rachel tried to call him 9 times throughout the trip, but he did not answer one call. She didn't attempt to text him, because she claims that only ruins relationships, and it's a cheap way out. He knows he shouldn't have hit him again, and she knows she shouldn't have let Nick come over to their apartment…especially the day Finn was leaving for Thanksgiving.

He was excited to see his mom and Burt, and Kurt was there too. All four stayed up pretty late talking and catching up with life. He told everyone how Rachel was doing with the musical, and of course her big performance tomorrow at the parade. They were all so proud of her, especially Kurt. He was the most excited of them all. He obviously didn't tell anyone in the family about the withholding of sex. Unfortunately, there was no one he can talk to about that. Everyone is aware of what it's about, and they all plan on coming up right before Christmas to see it.

_Thanksgiving morning…_

"Finn!" yells Kurt. "Come on, Rachel is supposed to come up next" he said yelling at Finn who's in the kitchen getting coffee. Finn walks into the family room and sits on the couch. They all come in and they announce the co-stars of 'Spring Awakening'. Finn smiles because in that moment, he realized she made it. His wife is on TV, on a huge stage, in front of millions of people watching. He then sees Nick, and starts to have a sick feeling.

"Why's he wearing sunglasses?" Kurt asks.

"Yeah, I don't know, that's weird" Finn just looks away feeling slightly guilty.

They start to sing 'I've got my Love to Keep me Warm' and Finn starts to smile. Of course, he's not happy at how close her and Nick are singing together and it looks like Rachel really means those words to him as she sings.

"Ohhh I LOVE this song" Kurt says as he starts to sway and sing along to the music.

Carol walks in and watch too. "Ohhh wow, she looks so good! They look so cute together on screen" she says forgetting that's her son's wife. Finn shoots her a look…"Well, you KNOW what I mean" she looks at Kurt and widens her eyes as if she realized she pissed off Finn.

Finn has so many mixed feelings. He loves his wife, and her accomplishments. He couldn't be more proud. He just wishes it was him next to her on that float. Singing together, laughing together, breathing in the NYC cold air together, and celebrating the holiday together. He can't help but wonder if they'll spend the evening together too. He really just wants to be with Rachel right now. He doesn't ever want to get in her way though, and he feels like he is with this musical. _Maybe I should stay here until Christmas,_ he thinks.

When the parade ends, Finn feels the need to call her. He wants to congratulate her, and tell her what a great job she did. He dials her cell and it goes straight to voicemail. He leaves a message. He thinks he left a really nice message_. Hi Rach. Great job up there this morning baby. I know I didn't talk to you yesterday after I left, but I got to Lima safe, and I miss you. Hope you're not…alone today. Love you._

A few hours go by, and Finn still hasn't heard anything back from Rachel. He starts to blame himself for being an ass again yesterday. He could have answered one of her NINE calls, and maybe he wouldn't be sitting through Thanksgiving meal with butterflies in his stomach. He grabs his phone again and dials her number…_voicemail again! Damn it. She turned her phone off probably on me…or maybe she ran out of battery I suppose. Either way, I don't know where she'll be on Thanksgiving, and didn't bother to ask. I really need to learn how to get this right. But she pissed me off SO MUCH. Gah._

Later that day, when Finn sits on the couch from being full, he looks at the clock and it's 6:00pm. He started to feel bad for mocking her being a vegan and not calling her back yesterday. _Maybe I'm getting what I deserve? _He asks the heavens. He excuses himself and goes upstairs. He starts to pack his stuff, and he's contemplating leaving first thing tomorrow morning. He has this bad vision of Rachel and Nick singing and dancing to Dean Martin songs, and eating vegan stuff. _They're probably drinking French champagne and laughing at me right now._ On the contrary, he feels bad he left Rachel alone on Thanksgiving, and he's here with the family. _She DID ask me to stay_. _She's alone! Why didn't I think of that earlier?_ He stupidly thinks. "I should have stayed with her, and she let me go. She never tried to stop me. Stupid Finn", he talks to himself_. Great! Now I'm hearing her laugh in my head, he thinks to himself. _He swears he hears her voice now. He continues to throw his clothes in his suitcase, and he can't stop hearing Rachel's voice. Suddenly, he starts to realize he's not imagining this.

Finn slowly walks out of the bedroom and pops his head out in the hallway. He walks towards the stairs and sees Rachel downstairs talking to Kurt. He doesn't say anything, because he can't believe she's downstairs. He just stares down at her. She's wearing a tan overcoat, a Burberry scarf, and a matching beret. She looks up and sees Finn, and she smiles up at him. He takes one step down and stops.

"I thought I'd never get here" she says as she starts to walk up the stairs. Finn just looks in shock that she's actually here, especially after watching her on the float this morning.

"H-H-How?" he stutters shaking his head. She stands one step under his and just stares in his eyes.

"I took a 1:45 from JFK, flew into Dayton…grabbed my luggage, rented a car, and drove a little over an hour" she smiled tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.

"But…when? I mean, when did you decide to do this?" he asked thinking this was spontaneous.

"That morning you left in anger, after you punched Nick out" she said. "I cancelled going to the gym and got online to check for flights. By 1pm on Thanksgiving Day, they are pretty open. I grabbed the earliest I can get after the parade, and had a cab driver practically risk our lives getting me to the airport on time. That's why I kept calling you, I wanted to tell you I was going to be coming" she said as she took his hand in hers. "Now, I have the best of both worlds. I got to do the parade, and now I get to spend time with family" she smiles. "And you" she leans over and whispers in his ear. She kisses his ear gently and he smiles back at her.

They end up all having coffee and dessert together. Rachel's dads were also surprised to see her, as they promised Finn earlier in the week they were going to come for dessert, which they did. All 7 of them hung out in the kitchen, and Kurt brought a board game. They sat and laughed and played Scattegories until Midnight, until everyone decided to all call it quits after Rachel insisted on being right about all the words they think she made up during the game.

"I'm telling you Finn…Habeneria is a type of rare Japanese flower" she still argues as she puts toothpaste on her toothbrush. Finn rolls his eyes at Rachel's competitiveness. He goes to the toilet and pees while she brushes her teeth, and Rachel can't help but glance over at Finn's business. It's actually been awhile since she's literally seen it. She feels it every morning when he leans into her from behind to say good morning. But, it's actually has been awhile since she's seen Finn Jr. She reverts her eyes as soon as he gets a glimpse she might have been sneaking a peek.

"Like what you see?" Finn smirks as he slaps her butt walking out of the bathroom.

"You didn't wash your hands!" she yells at him as he goes into the bed.

She walks out of the bathroom and shuts the light. It's completely dark, because Finn shut off the lamp before she can find the bed. "Finn, can you put the lamp on, I can't see?" she yells at him. He doesn't say anything, and she starts to move her hands around to find the bed, as she is not familiar with the bedroom. They only spend the night there once a year, as the other times they come in town, they stay at her dad's.

As she's looking for the bed, Finn grabs her from behind and scares her. "FINN!" she screams.

"Shhhhh" he starts to laugh. "You're going to wake everyone up. They're going to think we're having sex too…even though I KNOW that's not gonna happen" he laughs again.

"Well you scared the shit out of me!" she turns around and punches him in the stomach. Her eyes finally adjust to the dark, and she walks to the bed and gets under the covers. "Oh God, and even if we were having sex, we would definitely not be doing it here. It's just … weird" she rolls over to her side facing the opposite direction of Finn.

Finn raises the covers and gets in and moves over to Rachel's side. He hovers over her shoulder, "Thanks for coming tonight. You made my year" he says quietly and kisses her shoulder. She picks up her head and turns it and looks at Finn. She smiles and kisses him. She turns her whole body around to face Finn's and grabs on to his hips with her hands. She kisses him again, gently, and he kisses back with more force. He forces his tongue in her mouth and she allows it. He inches as close to her as he can and they continue to kiss. She knows he brushed his teeth, but she can taste the turkey, ham and stuffing. She doesn't mind it, because it's her husband. She loves how her husband tastes. She takes her arms and continues to rub them back and forth from his shoulder to his lower back. She can't get enough of him. She realizes she's the one who has to stop this time, otherwise she'll give in and go all the way.

"Finn….wait" she breaks away from the kiss. Finn knows exactly what she's doing, and he truly can't wait for the day where she doesn't have to stop it. They don't say anything else, and she slides her head down to his chest and rests her hand on his stomach.

"So, you are cool with driving home on Sunday?" he asked her as he closes his eyes and loves the feeling of her warm hand on his stomach.

"I would rather leave Saturday so I can perform on Sunday, but I can always look at flights" she said

"No…we'll leave Saturday, that's fine. We'll chill with family tomorrow…maybe go shopping, lunch, or whatever…and then we'll leave Saturday." he sounded slightly sad.

"Are you sure? I can get a flight Finn…it's not a big deal" she insisted. "Also…tomorrow, I'm hanging out with my dads in the day, so I'll meet you and the rest of the family up later, ok?" she asks.

"Yes I'm sure about the flight…and that's fine about you hanging out with your dads tomorrow" he smiles, because he knows WHY she's hanging out with her dads without him. _She's going to buy me my Hanukkah and Christmas present, _he smiles wide. Finn starts to think that Christmas is going to be the best ever. He gets his 3 month pass, and the musical will be over. He sighs.

After their long drive home, they finally arrive at their apartment. Finn keeps searching for a parking spot close to the apartment, and Rachel is getting impatient.

"Finn! Just find a parking spot please! Go around the corner, we don't need to park that close, we barely use this car." She barks at him.

"Ohhhhh k honey" he mocks her. He finally find a spot real close to their apartment and gloats that he was right to give it a few minutes. "See…it's all about patience" he smiles.

"Whatever" she sighs. "Look, I'm tired and stiff from sitting for so long. And, I forgot about Patti, so I hope she's alive. She hasn't been fed since I left" she says.

"Man, I can't wait for us to have kids" Finn rolls his eyes in fun.

"No worries, I plan on feeding our future children at least twice a day" she winks back. Finn parks the car, and they grab their luggage and start making their way inside their apartment.

"Looks like Patti's alive, you lucked out" Finn said as he walked over to the fish bowl to check.

"Told you, I got this under control. Our future kids will be fine" she smiles.

As soon as Rachel said that, Finn turned around with his duffle bag and hit the fish bowl, as it wobbled, Finn's eyes got bigger, but he couldn't react in time. The bowl fell to the ground and shattered on their wooden floor.

"FINN!" Rachel screeched. Finn was in shock and dropped his bag. He ran to get a cup filled with water, as Rachel ran over to the scene of the crime. Patti was flipping all over the place, and she just squatted down to watch, because she couldn't grab her. Finn finally came over and picked her up and put her in the cup of water. Rachel put her hand on Finn's shoulder, and they both started to laugh.

"Man, I guess I shouldn't have made fun of your parenting skills huh?" finn mocks himself.

"Yeah, well…that's what you get! However, it's Poor Patti who has to suffer. She probably thought that was the end of the world. I mean, she has been starving since Thursday, and now there was a Tsunami." She laughs.

"Ok…well, she might not survive this cup either. I'll find a bigger bowl and go buy her a new home tomorrow. We'll just tell her that her old house foreclosed" he smiled at Rachel. Rachel started to laugh, and they both sat on the wet floor holding Patti.

"You know what Finn?" she turned at looked at him endearingly.

"What?" Finn smiled.

"I can't help but think that even after all the stress we've endured, just these last few days….we are going to be great parents!" she smiled. "We can survive anything, because we love each other."

"Ohh you love me?" he points his thumb to his chest. "That's cute. The jury is still out on you yet, but I'll take that into consideration." He jokes.

Rachel nudges his shoulder and laughs. They both just sit there with Patti and laugh. They really love each other.


	8. Eight Crazy Nights

_**Hey guys…thanks for the wonderful reviews, especially those who said this is one of their favorite stories. I can't answer some of your questions, because I would give the story away, but I will try to keep it fresh and new as possible. I'll hopefully get the next one up tonight or tomorrow, to stay in time with Christmas Eve and New Years. It took me a few days for this chapter because it was hard to go through all 8 days of Hanukkah! You'll see. Hopefully I didn't lose any readers, because you thought they are not too lovey dovey. They have their moments lol. Thanks again!**_

_December 23, 2010…_

It is the second to the last performance of "Spring Awakening". It is also the last evening performance, since tomorrows will be at 2:00pm; given that it is Christmas Eve. Finn couldn't be more ecstatic. He's unfortunately working Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but he gets to have sex. He gets a 3 month pass… Nick out of his life…the show is over….and he gets his wife back in full.

Finn opens the door to their apartment very quietly. "Rachel?" he asks as he looks around the kitchen. It's 4:00pm, and he's not sure if Rachel left yet for the theatre. He decided to run and get a few more presents for Rachel, breaking their 1 gift rule for Christmas. After he looked around a bit, he realized she's not home and dropped his presents by the Christmas tree, or the Hanukkah bush, as Rachel likes to call it. Since they celebrate both, Rachel had to add her little touch to Finn's real Christmas tree. One night, she took the angel off the top and exchanged it for a Jewish star. Finn told her she's going to hell for doing that, but Rachel yelled back saying the only angels he worships are the Victoria's Secret ones. He lost the argument.

He decided to get a few more gifts for Rachel because he failed majorly on the Hanukkah gifts this year. Hanukah was early, so they already celebrated….he sighs thinking about that week:

_A few weeks back…_

December 5, 2010 – First night of Hanukkah

"Finn…." Rachel shakes her head. "Why did you get me a membership to Woman's Workout World? Do they even have one of these in our neighborhood?" she looks at him pissed.

"Uhhh…yeah, but…it's like nice because you can work out with all women. No Nick…I MEAN, you know….men. It's cool 'cause you can look like crap and stuff and not have to worry about anyone caring" he smiles and folds his arms.

Rachel just stares at him and throws the gift back under the Hanukkah bush that they are sitting next to "Thanks, but I like my gym." She sighs.

She hands Finn his gift. "A black tie?" he smiles and looks up at her.

"Well I figured you weren't crazy about the nice pink one I got you. Maybe you won't want to give this one away to a blond in a bar" she sarcastically says "…unless I die of course" she rolls her eyes.

"Yeah true" Finn starts to think. "But at least it's black…so it would be perfect to wear to your funeral" he says hoping she laughs. He keeps staring and waiting…

She does. He smile they hug it out sitting on the floor next to the Christmas tree.

_2__nd__ day of Hanukkah…_

"Well, since I already am giving you a 3 month sex pass, it's hard to make a better homemade gift. But…here you go" Rachel hands Finn his gift. It's a picture of them together from opening night of the musical.

"Rach! I love it, thank you" he kisses Rachel.

Finn hands her his gift. "A 'No' pass"? What's a 'no pass'?" she asks.

"Well I figured I'm probably going to utilize all 90 days of this sex pass, whether it's hot and wild sex, or maybe just a blow job…there's going to be a day that you might have your period or something, and well…you'll just want to say no. So, it's a pass to use against the 3 month pass, where you can waive a day" He smiles waiting for her response.

She looks at him weird, but then she realizes he's excited to give her this, and perhaps he put some time and thought into this. _Oh, I really don't need to do 6 more days of this_, she thinks. "Finn…thank you" she smiles and hugs him. She thinks he's so cute, but his gift is stupid.

He starts to kiss her passionately and hovers over her body as they sit on the floor by the tree. She can't get a good grip to hold herself up, and he takes advantage of that and lays right on top of her as he lowers her all the way down to the floor. He moves his hands up and tries to take her shirt off.

"Finn…what are you doing?" she says as he places kisses down her neck and shoulder. He puts his hands up her shirt and caresses her breasts over her bra, and she does a slight moan. He reads her response and moves his mouth down to her warm stomach. Rachel is allowing all this because she is lost in the feeling of Finn paying so much attention to her body. She takes her hands and combs them through his hair. He makes his way down passed her belly button and at the top of her shorts. He pulls them down very quickly in one move, but gently. She barely knows they're off before his mouth is placing small kisses on her clit, which sends a charge throughout her whole body. The only time it's been touched in these last few months is in the shower, and it's for cleaning purposes only. She barely even gives it a second thought, until she's on stage and she tries to bring her character to life for the audience. But now it's not Nick, and she's not on a stage. Finn has got his mouth on her clit and he's toying for entrance with his tongue. She starts to tense up and pulls his hair tight, because she knows it needs to stop now.

"Finn! I have made this far without an orgasm, and I'm going to commit. I may even jinx the performance at this point" she says almost out of breath. Finn lifts his head up and looks at her in her eyes.

"You can use the 'no pass' now, it's cool" he says. Rachel moves back and sits up, while pulling her shorts back up.

"NO NO NO…that's for the 3 months…it doesn't count now. You just said it's during the 3 months" she tries to argue her point. "Did you just do all of this to just play with me?" she sounds irritated.

Finn starts to laugh, "No, I'm not trying to play with you, but I think it's only fair that you get a taste of your own medicine. I was just trying to catch you off guard. It would have been nice to please you for Hanukkah" he leans his head down to look at her.

"Ohhh how sweet, I'm sure my Rabbi would love to hear about that gift" she rolls her eyes. "I can't believe you almost tried to trick me" she hits his shoulder. "You don't think this is hard on me? I know I created this, but it's not easy. I'm just trying to win us a Tony here Hudson!" she smiles and gets up.

She totally wanted him to go down on her, and it got her to the point where she was thinking of going into the bathroom and finishing it off herself. _I can't. Snap out of it Rachel,_ she has never felt this sexually frustrated in her life.

"I'm going to take a shower" she walks towards their bedroom. Finn starts to think something is weird and follows her. She goes in the bathroom and starts to run the water.

"You're not going to DO anything in there…are you?" Finn looks at her suspiciously.

Rachel puts her hands on her hips and rolls her eyes. "No, if I was going to do THAT…I would have just let you do it for me a few minutes back" she angrily starts to undress. "Now, please, I need some privacy" she walks him out of the bathroom and slams the door. Finn walks away smiling not sure if she's going to succumb to pressure or not, but he can't help but find his wife funny. Meanwhile, Rachel can't help but look down there…while she's lathering up. She closes her eyes and sighs.

3rd day of Hanukah…

"Come on Rach, I'm waiting here" Finn says as he's sitting on the floor waiting for Rachel to exchange their gifts. Rachel comes running out of the bathroom and sits next to Finn, Indian style.

"Sorry babe, here you go" she hands Finn his gift. Finn smiles and grabs the bag out of her hand. He ruffles through it and sees ANOTHER 3 month pass. Finn's eyes widen until he reads it.

"3 month pass" he starts to frown as he read the rest, "…to Cardinal Fitness?" he does a half non-enthusiastic smile.

"What? It's where I work out, and this way…you can come with me and YOU can spot me" she takes her elbow and nudges Finn as she winks. "Come on, you can't want another 3 month pass for sex do you? And why does all your passes have to INCLUDE something sexual?" she starts to get annoyed. Finn suddenly takes his small gift he got her and sat on it. She can see that it's a small box, but can't quite figure out what it is. She knows something is up, so she tackles him for it and starts to tickle the sides of his stomach.

"Come on RACH" he starts to giggle like a little girl. "Don't!" he yells. She is able to grab the gift under his butt and slide it out. She unwraps the gift like a little kid and throws the paper.

"Go-Go Fish Cards? A go fish edition of stripper positions" she says slowly as she reads it. She looks up at Finn waiting for him to explain.

"Well I thought it would be fun to play. You know…after last night I can tell you were all heated up and I finally realized this is starting to get to you. Perhaps the excitement of some new games will get us through this last month" he half smiles.

She looks at him deeply, trying not to get mad, because she just wishes that not everything had to be about sex. She's not sure if this is her fault because there's more of an emphasis on their sex life , or if this is just Finn. She remembers some of his past Hanukkah gifts as well, and gets annoyed.

"Finn…this is a holy time of year for both of us. I don't think you should be shopping at SPENCERS for my Hanukkah and Christmas gifts. If this was our anniversary…fine, that makes sense" she looks at him disappointed and gets up and walks away.

_4__th__ day of Hanukkah…_

"Hummus?" she asks as she was wondering why her gift was cold. She walks over to the kitchen and puts it in the fridge.

"I guess food is not a way to a woman's heart?" he asks as she passes him by in the living room and walks towards their bedroom.

"I'm going to bed, I'm tired. Good night" she says as she shuts the door. Finn just sits on the floor by their Hanukkah bush and sulks.

_5__th__ day of Hanukkah…_

"Money" she says as she opened the card and there was a crisp $50 bill.

"Not just money…fifty bucks" Finn tries to remind her, as he smiles with his eyes wide.

Rachel can't really be mad at money, but they don't usually buy each other gifts for all 8 days. She can easily buy Finn a sweater each time…but she knows that he's out of ideas here. "Thank you" she smiles and gives him a quick kiss.

"You don't like it?" he asks as he puts his hand on her thigh while they sit on the floor by the Hanukkah bush.

"No…I-I-I would be a bitch if I was to be mad about getting money. There are plenty of homeless people out there that could use this" she smiles. Finn got her, because she feels guilty if she would be pissed over receiving money, but it's not what she wanted from him. So _far, he's offered me sex games, a no sex pass, and money….oh and that hummus,_ she shakes her head.

_6__th__ day of Hanukkah…_

"Here" Finn hands Rachel a card as he's walking towards her on the floor. He sits down next to her and doesn't smile at all…he's scared now of her reaction.

"A homemade card?" Rachel smiles and takes it. She opens it up and there's a poem inside. Rachel reads it aloud.

_- At first I offered you a pass to say no_

_Then I offered you a stripper game without the pole_

_Then I got you a tub of hummus_

_But you didn't like it, what a bummus _

_So I slipped you a fifty_

_Which you thought wasn't a good gifty_

_So I made you this card and wrote you a poem_

_You're prettier than Gisele Bundchen - _

_Oh my, _Rachel's eyes widen in horror at his lack of rhyming skills, along with his 4th grade diction. "I'm speechless Finn….h-h-how…original" she fakes a smile.

"I can't seem to get you the right gift to show how much I love you, without the outcome of you being naked or something, so…" he throws his hands out for a hug. Rachel hugs him and laughs internally at him. It's not worth it to get mad…_he's just a bad gift giver,_ she starts to realize. _But, he did write me a poem,_ she smiles.

"Well…Bundchen doesn't really rhyme with poem, but I appreciate you thinking I am prettier than her" she giggles. "However, I'm sad to say…you're no Tom Brady" she winks at Finn.

"Yeah, he's hot" Finn jokes back.

_7__th__ Day of Hanukkah…_

Rachel snuck through the door in their apartment quietly. She was way late, because they went out afterwards. She called Finn to tell him, but it went to voicemail, so she left him a message. He didn't call back, so she just went out. She figured Finn was already sleeping, so she went straight to their bedroom to get ready for bed. When she returned to their bed, she realized Finn wasn't in it. She lifted her head and looked around. She got up and walked to the living room and figured he would be on the couch. _Where the hell is he?_ She thought. _It's 2:00am. _She was too tired to start investigating where he might be, so she called him quickly and left him a message. "Ok I'm sorry, I missed the 7th day of Hanukkah, and it's not even your holiday. All my fault babe, please come home though…I don't want to worry all night" she hangs up the phone and goes back to bed_. If he's not lying in a ditch, he better have a good explanation for where he is,_ she thinks as she gets under the covers.

30 minutes later, Finn walks through their bedroom door. He throws his clothes off down to his boxers and gets in bed.

"Finn!" Rachel snaps at him right before he can even close his eyes. "Where have you been?" she asked.

"I went out. What's the big deal?" he says as he throws the blanket up over his shoulder. "Why do you get to go out, but I can't?" he says in a snarky tone.

"Because you went out to get back at me…AND you didn't even tell me." She barks back. "At least call me and tell me."

"You would have been pissed either way, so what's the difference? So, for your Hanukkah gift tonight, I went out and gave you alone time" he says as he rolls over to the opposite side.

"God, you can really be an ass sometime" she says quietly and rolls over as well.

_8__th__ day of Hanukkah…_

Finn walks through the door with groceries and a new sister for Patti. "Patti" Finn yells out talking to their fish. "I got you a new sister! It's mommy's Hanukkah gift tonight. What should we name her huh? Mommy got to name you after a famous Broadway star, maybe I can name you after a famous football player?" Finn thinks about it for a minute, and then comes up with what he thinks is a great name. "How about…Chad Ochocinco"? he says smiling. "I know Chad is a boy's name, but he's an awesome football player, and it seems to be the trend these days anyhow."

Finn takes the new beta fish and puts it in the bowl with Patti. He then walks in the kitchen and unloads the groceries. He bought a bottle of Rachel's favorite _French_ Champagne, and some ingredients to make vegan cupcakes for Rachel. _Ok, I think I finally got the gift giving down tonight,_ he smiles to himself as he pops open the bottle of champagne. "Don't tell mommy I'm starting early" he yells out to Patti and Chad.

Finn pours himself some champagne and gets the ingredients out to make the cupcakes. He also bought dye to make pink frosting, _I'm so gonna get laid very soon. Or maybe a little somethin' somethin' to hold me over tonight,_ he smiles widely. _How can she not find a man baking for her adorable. I'm sure Nick doesn't do this for her,_ he thinks.

An hour goes by and he hears the timer go off in the kitchen. Finn went to sit down and watch TV as he was waiting for the cupcakes to be done. He starts to walk over to the kitchen, as he passes Patti and Chad in the bowl. He stopped in his tracks, and quickly glanced back to the bowl. _What the Fuck? _he's in shock as he looks in the bowl. He sees Patti lying on her stomach at the top, and Chad is swimming around. "Oh no no no no no…what just happened!" he yells out. The beeping is still going off, but he's now focused on his dead fish. Finn rushes to the kitchen to grab a cup so he can scoop Patti out to take a closer look.

_Oh man, I think she's dead for sure_. _Rachel is going to kill me!_, he starts to think how screwed he is. He then takes the cup to the bathroom and stands right in front of the toilet. _Ok, maybe I'll discard Patti, and maybe Rachel won't notice the difference in color of the fish. _He stares into the toilet and then back to the cup. "Bye Patti. You were a good friend and…fish. I appreciate you always greeting me when I would get home from work….or those times you kept quiet about me watching those late night movies on Showtime and Cinemax after Rachel went to bed", he says. He then dumps Patti down the toilet and flushes. He sighs.

"Finn!" Rachel yells out as she walks through the door. "Where are you and what's burning?" she asks.

_Shit,_ Finn runs out from the bathroom and into the kitchen. "My cupcakes!" he yells out and runs to the oven. "And they're burnt, great!" he throws the oven mits on the counter and frowns. Rachel starts to laugh at how cute he's being. "Don't laugh, it's not funny!" he yells at her. She laughs even harder now.

"Is this an 'I'm sorry' peace offering for being such a jerk last night?" she asks him as she keeps laughing.

"Actually…NO. This is just your Hanukkah gift tonight, along with…" he cuts himself off, because he doesn't want to tell her about Patti just yet.

"Along with what?" she looks at him in the eyes. He turns away and starts to look all over the place, as he goes and grabs another glass of champagne. He grabs Rachel a glass too and pours her one.

"Along with Champagne! Here, I got you champagne too" he hands her the glass. She takes it but doesn't keep her eyes off of him. "Stop staring at me, what?" he says. He leans back on the counter and waits for her to say something. She starts to look around the apartment like he's hiding something.

"How did you burn the cupcakes, what were you doing?" she asks. _Was he watching porn again? _She asks herself. _He usually doesn't turn those channels on until I go to bed, and he thinks I'm sleeping, but I know what he's doing._ "I mean, our apartment isn't that big, so it's hard to forget you have cupcakes in the oven!" her voice starts to get louder. "Were you watching something naughty TV that kept you preoccupied?" she asks him.

"NO", _how did she know about that? _"I got distracted! I mean, I got home and had this PERFECT idea to make you these awesome vegan cupcakes…and and and…suddenly, I look at the fish bowl, and Chad had KILLED Patti!" he shouts out.

"WHO'S CHAD?" she yells. She turns to look over at the fish bowl.

"That's Chad" he says as she's looking at the bowl and sees Chad Ochocinco swimming around in there. Then, she does exactly the opposite of what Finn expects her to do. She bursts out laughing! Finn just stares at her wondering if she snapped. "Why are you laughing" he asks her still not sure if he should join in.

"Because I didn't know Patti was a boy" she continues to laugh.

"Huh?" he asks. He's so confused right now. He thinks Rachel has possibly lost it.

"Finn, my dear…you can't put 2 male beta fish in the same bowl. They'll fight and kill each other. Apparently, Patti was a boy" she walks over to Finn to hug him because he looks stunned.

"How did you know that about beta fish? You don't strike me as a pet expert?" he asks her.

"When we bought her at the store that day, the girl who was helping us was going over beta maintenance. You weren't paying attention because you were busy staring at her rack" she rolls her eyes remembering that day. "I'm pretty sure that was the whole reason you decided we go in there at the mall that day" she says.

Finn just looks around because he knows he was guilty, and ignores that comment. "So…you're not mad?" he stands there still not quite sure if he should laugh or even hug back.

"Yeah" she sighs. "But, I know you meant well".

"Well…it's probably best, because I thought Chad was a girl. If that were true, then we might have lots of babies on our hands" he chuckles a bit. "And I'm sorry my awesome fish killed yours. I guess football is better than Broadway" he says pumping his fist.

Rachel just rolls her eyes as his stupid comment. "Well...I would say I like the champagne, but it looks like it's all gone" she looks at him shaking her head.

"8 bad days of gifts, and now it ended in Patti's death…and I drank your champagne, yes. Guilty as charged." he frowns.

Finn looks down at her presents under their Christmas tree and smiles. He's got a huge surprise for her tonight too. He told Rachel he had to work, but he lied. He bought a ticket to her last evening performance tonight. Her actual last performance is tomorrow, on Christmas Eve, but he has to work for real. _She's going to be so shocked when she sees me,_ he thinks to himself. He starts to throw his shirt off as he walks in their bedroom to shower and put on something nice.

**END OF CHAPTER 8**

Next chapter…the performance on the 23rd and then Christmas Eve

Small note: Her actual last performance is at 2:00pm on Christmas Eve. Finn is going to the one tonight on December 23rd, Thursday. I hope I made that clear in the story.


	9. Handcuffs: Not So Much Fun

_**Hey guys, thanks again for the reviews! I'm sorry I didn't get it out before Christmas, I probably re-wrote this chapter 5 or 6 times. In fact, I'm thinking of publishing the "alternative" to what could have happened in this chapter (just for fun)…I honestly went in 3 different directions, and was scared which one to publish. Maybe at the end of the story, I can publish the other way it could have gone. This chapter was the hardest thus far, so I'm sorry if it's not as funny (or good) as the others. I think the next chapter will be a lot more fun, so hopefully it will make up for it. Merry (late) Christmas! Ps: I believe I heard the Jews have Hanukkah bushes, so I can't take credit for that one lol.**_

Finn walks into the theatre and takes his seat. He is wearing a charcoal suit with Rachel's black tie that she got him. This is Rachel's last evening performance, with one more at 2pm tomorrow. He's got his junior mints in hand, and his program in the other. He takes his seat right in the front row, and hopes Rachel sees him in the first scene. She wants her to be pleasantly surprised when she comes out. He knows in the first scene, Rachel sings a solo. He just loves when she sings, and he forgets about anything else in the world when he hears her voice. He's busy being married to her, and forgets sometimes that she's a performer, and has that angelic voice that melts him.

_The curtain goes up and the musical begins…_

Finn closes his eyes as Rachel starts to sing her song. He thinks back of all those angry nights they had. All the fights…all the jealousy and yelling…but then all the make-up kisses and the good times, like the time she surprised him on Thanksgiving. Then, there it is! Rachel glances over and spots Finn in the audience. _Ohhhh no, what's he doing here?_ She starts to worry, because she never told him the truth. He's banned from coming here, and if anyone finds out, she doesn't know what will happen. Her performance is now starting to falter_. Come on Rachel, you are a professional. You're going to have to learn how in Broadway, the show must go on…even in adversity._

Rachel starts to worry about what could happen if he's noticed by Nick or any of the producers. She can barely concentrate on the performance, that she's ready to text Finn and tell him she'll have sex with him tonight if he leaves now. _Yeah, maybe if I text him during intermission telling him to go to Lovers Lane or something, he'll leave for sure, I know Finn well enough, _she starts to think of ways to get him out of there.

"Rachel, what's wrong? You look distracted tonight" Nick whispers backstage in between one of their scenes.

"I'm ok…I-I just have a couple things on my mind" she whispers back. They only have a few more minutes before their next scene together.

"You're tense, come on…this is an important night too. Everyone important is here tonight!" he tries to pep her up, but also make her feel guilty that she's not performing right.

Rachel turns and looks at him, and leans her head in and whispers back, "Finn is here. I didn't tell him he was banned, I sorta made it sound like it was his idea not to want to come. I think it backfired, and I feel like I'm going to get fired if the producer spots him" she says.

"Ok, I'll take care of it for you hun" Nick leans in and whispers back. "You calm down and relax, and I'll go grab him after the show and tell him I want to bury the hatchet with all our past problems. Maybe I'll invite him out for a drink just me and him" he smiles at her.

"Thanks Nick. If Finn finds out that he was banned from the producers, he'll want a separation or something. I know him…he'll never want to get in the way of my career, and if he feels like he is; he'd step down in a noble manner so my career wouldn't be compromised. Besides, I like the possibility that maybe you and Finn can be friends" she smiles back.

"It's ok. Your husband obviously is very….passionate", he rolls his eyes, and then they both stop talking as they have to get ready for their next scene.

When the show ends, everyone is standing and cheering. Finn is so ecstatic that it's almost all over, and this is the very last night he gets to go to bed frustrated. He can finally do whatever he wants to his wife while laying in bed, without his hand getting slapped away each time. Finn tries to work his way through the crowds to get to the back, but when he's approached by one of the security guards, he is told he can't go back there.

"Come on man…you know me? I'm married to Rachel Berry, I just didn't get a back stage pass this time because I'm surprising her tonight" he says as he tries to push his way passed the security guard.

"Sorry man, I have strict rules that you are not allowed back here" he grabs his arm and pushes him back gently.

"Dude, just because I don't have a pass? Come on…you know me!" Finn's voice starts to get a bit louder as he is confused why he won't let him through.

"It's not the pass man. You are on the list not to let in, you're not even supposed to be here actually" he says matter of fact. "You've got to leave otherwise I'll get someone to escort you out. Sorry dude, it's not my rules. I like you, but I can't let you back here" the security guard tries to reason with him.

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Finn yells and pushes him back with both hands.

"That's it dude…" The security guard was just about to get on the radio to call someone when he here's a voice…

"Dan! Stop!" this guy comes running over to the security guard to grab his radio from him. Finn turns his head and realizes it's Nick.

"Back off Nick…I'll hit you again!" Finn says as he moves his arm back like he's going to take a swing at him again.

"Relax Finn…I'm here to help you." he said as he turned to look at the security guard. "Dan, it's ok. The producer told me to tell you to let Finn in since this is the last evening performance. He can come with me" says Nick as he calms both gentlemen down.

"Alright Nick, you're the boss. Sorry Mr. Berry" Rick says as he nods his head in apology.

"HUDSON. My last name is Hudson" Finn barks back.

Nick just laughs, because he secretly loved the goof up. He grabs Finn by the arm and guides him to the back. "Hey, I know you've punched me the last few times and I shouldn't even be doing this for you, but I like Rachel, and for some reason, she seems to like you" he rolls his eyes.

"Yeah well….thanks, I guess" Finn says somewhat nicely, because he just wants to see Rachel and doesn't have time to get into another argument with Nick. "But what was the deal with that? Why wouldn't he let me in?" Finn asks.

"It's nothing. With the musical gaining more popularity, especially after the Thanksgiving parade, security is getting tight. He was just trying to do his job, that's all" Nick says as he guides him into one of the rooms. "Here, stay here, and I'll go get Rachel for you" Nick says as he pushes Finn in a room and closes the door.

Finn doesn't say anything and just starts looking around in the room, which actually looks like an office. He sees a whole bunch of photos and awards in there. The door slowly opens and he turns his head expecting to see Rachel.

"Finn" says one of the producers. "Please sit down, we need to have a talk" he directs Finn to sit down and he walks around to sit at the desk.

"I had a talk with Rachel awhile ago. She was instructed to tell you to not come to anymore performances, but you seem to have broken that rule", he folds his hands together as he looks right at Finn.

"But sir…" Finn tries to explain before being interrupted.

"Now wait a minute son, she told you not to come, and you disobeyed. This is your last warning; unless you want to deliberately ruin your wife's career" he said sternly.

"But sir…" Finn starts to squirm and edge out of his seat.

"There's nothing else to discuss. You cause a problem each time you're here, and I understand the role is intense, but if you can't handle it, then I would suggest you not being married to an actress."

"Sir, I understand, please. Nothing even happened tonight." Finn says as he's interrupted again.

"That's not what Nick said. He said you threatened to hit him again, and then tried to attack the security guard" he leans closer to Finn to watch where his eyes go.

"No, I didn't attack him!" Finn gets up from his chair.

"Sit down son! Now…did you lay your hands on the security guard, yes or no?" he calmly waits for an answer.

Finn shuts his eyes because he knows he did. He doesn't answer he just nods his head yes as he looks down to the floor.

"Ok, so you can see why we can't have this sort of thing going on? And do you think you're helping your wife's career out?" he asks rhetorically. "Do you know how much money I've spent on make up the last 2 months to cover up his 2 different bruises on Nick's face?" he says to him pissed.

Finn just sits there with his head down. He's ashamed at himself that he couldn't keep his cool during the duration of the musical. _Man, if Rachel would just give it up to me, then maybe the producer would understand my irrational behavior_, he thinks. He hears the door open and he turns his head to look. _What the fuck?_ he gets scared as he sees it's 2 police officers.

"Sorry Finn, but Nick and the security guard just don't feel safe with you here. They pressed charges of you attacking them, and there's nothing I can do" he says as he watches one of the officers walk over to Finn and ask him to stand up.

"Come on, I'm not a criminal" he says as the officer starts to place handcuffs on his hands.

"That's what they all say once they get caught" one of the officer's says as he starts to guide Finn to the door.

"Wait" Finn says as he turns around to the producer. "Can you at least get Rachel for me so I can speak to her before I go off to jail?" he pleads.

The producer shakes his head no, then speaks. "Sorry Finn. I can't have any more drama, unless it's on stage. You're just going to have to call her once you get to the station. I can't have this stress, and I don't want my co-star upset." he says disappointed.

Finn walks away in handcuffs with the two police officers. He doesn't fight it. He doesn't yell. He's felt like a prisoner the last 4 months anyway, might as well literally play the part. _Oh God, how did it get to this point?_ he asks himself. _The only time I've ever been close to getting arrested was when Rachel and I went apple picking upstate, and she conned me into picking an apple right from the tree and eating it. Something about "nature's bounty" she said. But then, the owner of the orchard caught me and pointed a shotgun in my direction, which turned into me giving him 100 bucks for that one stupid apple. Rachel laughed the entire way home mentioning something about a scene in the "Wizard of Oz". I didn't find it as funny as she did, _he sighs thinking about that moment. And now, he's thinking about how he wishes he can go back to where his main problem was stealing an apple off a tree.

When they get to the station, Finn has to be finger printed, and then he gets his one phone call. Well, Rachel's gonna love this call, he thinks to himself. As he starts to pick up the phone and dial her cell, he thinks about what the producer said. _"…I don't want my co-star upset", _runs through his head._ If she finds out I tried to attack Nick and the security guard tonight, she's gonna be pissed. I think I'd rather actually spend the night in jail,_ he starts to think. _I can't not call her though; she'll wonder where I'm at, and they took my cell…shit! _He decides to call her and pray that he gets her voicemail. _Ok, if I get her voicemail, I tell her that I'm going into work, and I'll be there all night. If she answers the phone, then it means I have to tell her I'm in jail right now. I'll leave it in the hands of the cell phone gods. Good plan Finn,_ he is proud of his thinking.

He gets her voicemail, so he decides to stick to his plan. He leaves her a message saying he's going into work, and he'll be home in the morning. _Ok, I'll call someone else tomorrow morning to pick me up and bring bail…I'll probably fight with my wife over the Nick and Dan thing…hopefully still figure out how I'll get sex tomorrow…go to work…have more sex, and then exchange Christmas presents…make her feel guilty about me being arrested…then have sex, and go to bed, _he smiles at his master plan and what he thinks will still be a good Christmas Eve. _Ohhh, and remind her that she still owes me 100 bucks from her conning me to eat that apple that day._

Rachel was in the bathroom in her dressing room putting some make up on for their cast Christmas party. When she walked out and saw her blackberry blinking, but when she picked it up, she noticed it was from an unknown number. As she started to listen to her message and realized it was Finn, Nick had knocked on the door and let himself in her dressing room.

"Hey Rachel…I think we need to talk. Maybe we can go out for a drink tonight" he said as he shut the door behind him.

"Yeah one minute, I'm listening to the message Finn left me", she said as she was grabbing her coat to put it on with the other free hand. Nick's eyes got wide_. Fuck, he's going to tell her he's in jail probably…I'll have to explain,_ he thought as he was watching her carefully listen to the message. _Shit, she looks upset. _

Before Rachel can say anything, Nick blurts out "Rachel! I can explain. He attacked Dan, the security guard and threatened to hurt me again. I couldn't calm him down, I-I-I tried!" he shouted.

Rachel looked at Nick very confused and slowly moved her phone down from her ear and hit the end button. "What are you talking about?" she squinted her eyes and slightly tilting her head.

"What do you mean? He…was asked to leave by the cops. What did he say in the message?" Nick starts to say hesitantly, because he thinks he might have dug a hole for himself.

"He said in the message that he was called into work tonight in the editing room. He was going to be home in the morning." She said almost as a question, waiting for Nick to explain his side of the story. "Why? What do you know? What do you mean he attacked Dan" she asked him.

"The guy went crazy again Rachel….he pushed Dan when he found out he couldn't come backstage. Then he threatened to hit me again. He couldn't be contained; we had to call the cops."

"YOU CALLED THE COPS?" she looks at him baffled why he would do that. "Look, I know he's hit you, but you kind of gave him a good reason to Nick. And that GUY… is my husband. I'm sure he wasn't that out of control." she walked to grab her purse on the dresser. _I shouldn't be defending Finn, but it's what every good wife does for her husband. However, I'm going to kill Finn when we get home._

"He's ruining this musical Rachel. I'm not sure what's going on here, but he is insanely jealous. How are you ever going to have a lead role if you're married to him? Maybe you SHOULD let him separate from you" he said as she is making her way to the door.

Rachel stops dead in her tracks under the doorway. She turns around and walks over to Nick and slaps him across the face. "You don't know what you're talking about. You have NO idea what's going on between him and I" she turns abruptly and walks out. _You actually might be on his side if you found out I was with holding sex from him, _she thinks to herself as she leaves.

Rachel took a guess and went to the nearest police station. Finn had used *67 when he called her, so she didn't know which one he was at. When she arrived, and embarrassingly had to ask if her husband was at that one. She got Dan to drop charges, because he said he wasn't mad at Finn at all, but he was pressured by Nick to do it in the first place. One of the police officers went to the holding cell where Finn was planning on spending the night and told him that his wife was here to pick him up.

"My wife?" Finn asked the police officer.

"Is she really tiny, but surprisingly has a voice the size of a whale?" he asked Finn.

"Yeah, she's kinda like a little dog…she is small but barks a lot" Finn answered back.

"She also has quite the imagination. While she was signing the papers to release you, she was practicing how she's going to explain this story on the Tonight Show to everyone in the waiting room. Is she going to be on it?" he asks Finn as they start walking towards the hall where Rachel is waiting.

"Not that I know of…she just likes to be prepared" he said. "She's already written her speech at our first daughter's wedding" he says it like it's a normal thing.

Rachel spots Finn and she thinks he looks so handsome in his suit and new black tie that she had bought him for Hanukkah. "I thought you'd be all beaten up" she asked Finn as he stands right in front of her.

"What do you mean?" he asks.

"Usually when someone goes to jail, they always come out with their clothes all ripped, and a black eye or something" she says as she puts her hand on his suit to wipe off any debris.

"No, that's just on TV. I was sitting alone in there on a bench reading a people magazine" he said as he put his hand on her shoulder and gives her that half smile.

"Well, let's take you home jailbird" she sighs as she puts her hands in her pocket and turns around.

"How did you know I was here?" he asked Rachel.

"I'm not stupid. Also, Nick saw that I was listening to a message from you on my phone, and he automatically assumed you were telling me to pick you up from the police station. He sorta spilled the beans" she said.

"Well, I guess he got his revenge on me. I hit him twice, and he got me thrown in jail on your last evening performance" he says sadly.

"Well…now he's been hit 3 times" she winks at him. Finn just slaps her butt as they start walking outside.

"Hey, watch it! I'll throw you in jail again for harassment" she quips back. "And I'm super mad at you, but unlike you, I choose not to cause scenes in front of people" she says as they walk outside to grab a cab. Finn doesn't say anything, he just puts his head down like a little child. "AND, I also got Dan and Nick to drop the charges, so it won't be on a permanent record at least. I don't think it will be too much of a story when I become famous one day" she said as if he should thank her.

As the cab pulls up, Rachel does a 180 and starts to laugh quietly. "Why are you laughing?" he asked, as now he's thinking his wife has gone mad. First she's yelling, now she's laughing.

"Well Hudson…I bet you expected the next time you were going to be in handcuffs was going to be from me…not from actual police officers" she said as she smiled as they got in a cab. "Maybe this is punishment enough" she starts to think out loud.

"I was ironically turned on a bit tonight" he jokes back. She just smiles as they are pretty quiet on the ride home. Rachel got a text message from Nick apologizing, and saying that he found her diva-ness a turn on, and actually has more respect for her. He also asked her to meet her out so they can talk, but she didn't respond to his 2 text messages and just shut her phone off. She knew she had to be with Finn tonight, although she secretly wished that she can bring both Finn and Nick together. _That's just not the case, I almost feel like I have to choose between one or the other, _she sighs at the thought. She needs to figure out a way to be able to live a double life.

When they get to their apartment, they both walk up the stairs in silence, as Rachel opens the door. Finn walks over to the Christmas tree to put it on, and then he collapses on the couch. Rachel follows and sits next to him, while the Christmas tree is the only light in the apartment. She's mad, but she's trying to understand his behavior. She knows he was being sweet trying to surprise her tonight too.

"So, how come you left me a voicemail saying you were working tonight?" she asked him as she put her hand on his thigh.

"I didn't want to get in the way of your career anymore, and….I was scared of you" he said as he put his hand on hers.

"So you were going to spend the night in jail? Am I THAT scary?" she half laughs and rolls her eyes. "You're crazy and adorable Finn, but you're not getting in the way. Just…." She puts her head down, "…just when you can't control your anger" she sighs.

"I'm pretty sure it's sexual anger that's leading the charge here." He says staring straight at the Christmas tree.

"Yeah, I'm aware…everyday" she says as she shakes her head. "Despite your recent physical out lashes, a promise is a promise though", she bites her bottom lip." For being such a good boy for most of the 4 months, I'll have a big surprise for you when you get home from work tomorrow night" she says as she smiles. "Santa is going to be very good to you darling" she squeezes his hand and kisses his cheek. She starts to move closer to Finn as possible without sitting on top of him. She takes her right hand and glides it down Finn's left thigh, and takes her other hand and starts to toy with his tie, loosening it.

"So…do you have any ideas how you will use your 3 month pass tomorrow night?" she whispers in his ear and he can feel her breath. She starts to place tiny kisses on his earlobe, and just under it waiting for his response. He just moans. She starts to kiss down his neck as her other hand continues to tug on his tie. He can feel himself already getting hard down there.

"Ra-Ra-Rachel" he slowly moans again. "What are you doing? You know we can't do anything, and this just gives me blue balls." He says as he pushes her away, slightly irritated.

"Come on Finn" she starts to move her mouth back to his neck. "I do feel bad a little…you got arrested because of me….you have been deprived….for four months…baby" she whispers in between kisses. Finn just closes his eyes loving the feeling of her this close, but he's so sick of her not being able to act on it.

"Rachel" he says as he gets up off the couch and stares down at her, "This has been FOUR frustrating months. Don't tease me tonight please" he points an open hand towards her and then turns around to walk to their bedroom. Rachel gets up off the couch to follow him, as he goes in their walk in closet to take his suit off. She sits at the end of the bed and waits for him to come out. When he does, he's wearing a white tee and his boxers.

"Are you mad at ME Finn?" she asks watching him walk around the bed to their bathroom, as he enters it and leaves the door open. "YOU are the one who usually pushes the boundaries of our 'no sex' situation every night…usually attempting to maul me every night as soon as I get in bed" she rolls her eyes as she shouts into the bathroom.

Finn comes out a few minutes later as Rachel is still sitting at the end of the bed. He walks to his side of the bed and opens the covers and slides in.

"Finn? Come on…I don't get what's up" she says as she turns to look at him. "I'm trying my hardest here baby…balancing this musical, Nick, the producer, YOU, causing problems with your violence…"

"STOP!" he interrupts Rachel. "I know Rachel…I'm a terrible husband who can't deal with you grinding on a pretty boy every night, while you with hold sex from me for four God damned months!" he says loudly as he brings the covers up to his neck.

"Finn…I NEVER said you were a terrible husband, you have been good, despite some of your actions. I'm saying that you act like your world is ending because we're not having sex for a few months…meanwhile I'm the one who's still dealing with being a wife, a cleaning lady, AND a career woman, who happens to be one of the leads in a Broadway musical" she gets up to stand over him on the bed.

"Rachel…I didn't realize you were the LEAD role in a musical…tell me more about it" he sarcastically says as he rolls over to the opposite side of where she's standing. Rachel just rolls her eyes, because she thinks Finn is not being understanding.

"I should have let you stay in jail tonight "she bites back. "Here I am trying to be nice after what you pulled again".

"Fine by me…I'm pretty much in jail over here. Actually, I'm pretty sure in jail they have more sex" he sarcastically says. "As long as you take care of yourself and your career, that's all that matters, Rachel".

"Well" she puts her hands on her hips, "You're right Finn, that's why I never come back to you after you cause problems with me and all my cast mates. That's why I didn't come and get you out of jail, after you, YET AGAIN, caused problems Nick AND Dan. That's why I NEVER take your side…and even after you were arrested tonight for your crude behavior, I-I-I STILL wanted to be with you…and figured I would spend the night cuddling with you by the Hanukkah bush…"

"CHRISTMAS tree" he interrupts her.

"…CHRISTMAS tree. But…you decided to make the worst of this and pout like a little baby. Well, I hope Santa is bringing you something nice, because it won't be from me when you're acting like this" she says still standing there.

"Do me a favor Rachel and don't do anything for me then. I don't want to be blamed. You didn't tell me I was banned, otherwise I wouldn't have shown up. It's YOUR fault, but you never see it that way" he says as he turns to look at her.

"Well, you're the one who got BANNED in the first place. And you know what? I'm not going to sit here and feel sad with you…I'm going to get some fresh air. Have fun sulking" she says as she walks out of their bedroom. She grabs her coat and her keys and slams the door behind her as she goes downstairs to grab a cab. She decides to answer Nick's text, she figures if she's not getting along with her real lover, she should try and reconcile with her fake one.

When Rachel arrives through the door, it's 2:00am. She walks over to their _Hanukkah bush_ to go and turn it off, since it's still on. Right before she turns the lights off, she spots a whole bunch of gifts under the tree. She bends down to get a better look, and she sees that all of them are for her. _To: The Best Wife in the World, Love: The Man Who Needs You More Than Anything, _reads one of the tags on the presents. Rachel sighs at how cute Finn is. She starts to smile, because she loves him so much, and feels guilty for going out. _He was acting like such a baby tonight though,_ she fights with herself.

When she gets to their bedroom, she throws her clothes off down to her underwear and just slides right into bed. She's too tired to wash her face and brush her teeth. She rolls over and feels Finn's arm, and takes her hand and puts it in his and squeezes it. Finn wakes up from contact and slightly opens one of his eyes. "I'm so mad at you. Please don't sleep with me tonight" he says to her quietly.

"I love you" she says as she smiles at him and doesn't take him too seriously. She knows he's mad because she took sex away from him for 1/3 of the year. _Wow, that sounds worse when you put it into fractions,_ she thinks. "I thought no matter how angry we are at each other, we never go to bed angry…or apart" she says quietly.

"Fine" he grinds his teeth, because he doesn't want to give in to her. "Just don't touch me", he says as he breaks contact and rolls over to the opposite direction as Rachel just stares at the back of his white t-shirt.

END OF CHAPTER 9

Next chapter: Christmas Eve (and the first night of the sex pass)


	10. Right Hand on Yellow

_**Wow, thanks again for the reviews! It took me forever to get that last chapter right. You guys are really nice. I had this chapter done this morning before I read the reviews, but I guess all great Finnchel fans think alike, because I'm on the same page as ya'll…you'll see what I mean when you read this chapter. **_

_Christmas Eve_

Finn's eyes slowly open from the sunlight hitting his face. "Rachel, you didn't shut the room darkeners" he whines not even knowing if she's in bed or not. He's lying on his stomach, as he lifts his head up to see if she's there. He hits her side with his hand to wake her up. "Rachel. Rachel. Rachel. Rachel. Rachel." He keeps repeating as he keeps hitting her.

"WHAT?" she yells back as she takes her pillow from under her and throws it at him.

"You didn't close the room darkeners" he repeats.

"You could have closed them before you cried yourself to sleep last night" she said back curled up under the covers. "Besides, it probably would have been brighter in jail" she says.

"Are you naked?" he asks as he starts moving his hand all over her upper body.

"Stop" she giggles from the touch as she moves his hand away. "I just threw my clothes off last night and got into bed, and I have underwear on…so not naked" she says still not moving her head snuggled under the sheets. "You didn't want to touch me, so…" she tries to make him feel bad about last night.

Finn lifts his head up and moves his body directly on top of Rachel. He nestles his head in the crook of Rachel's neck as he starts to kiss her passionately. "You're right, but Finn Jr. disagrees with me, so tonight I might touch you just a little" he said as stayed focused on her neck, placing kisses on it.

Rachel rolls over so she's entirely on her back and staring up at Finn. "So, are we starting all over today?" she smiled. Finn just nods and kisses Rachel passionately. He deepens the kiss, and she allows him, getting lost in the moment. She loves making up with him after a fight, probably more than he does. He's not as passionate as her when it comes to fighting, only when it comes to sex. Sometimes he doesn't even realize they were fighting to begin with, until Rachel reminds him why she was mad at him.

Finn starts to forget that he can't have sex with her just yet. He moves his head down to her boobs and attempts to get one of them entirely in his mouth, as if it's his last meal. He takes her nipple into his mouth, as deep as he can, and swirls his tongue around it. She lets out a very loud moan, because the feeling is remarkable. She is so used to not having sex with Finn, that she almost forgets she's in her own bed with her husband, and not on stage. However, she's reminded when she hears her name being called out…and God's.

"God…Rachel" he says breathlessly, placing kisses down her stomach and caressing her breasts.

"Finn!" she snaps out of it. "We've made it this far baby, I can't jinx the performance now" she says as she grabs his head to move his mouth away from her core.

"Does it really matter at this point? It's your last performance anyway" he says as he fights her resistance and starts to bring his mouth back to her nipple.

_Yikes. I still have to tell him about Chicago,_ she tries to stay focused as her nipple is being sucked.

"Finn...we have to stop" she says not wanting too, but visions of Tony dance in her head.

"I can't wait to not hear the word 'stop' coming from your mouth tonight" he says as he moves his head up to plant small kisses on her collar bone. "In fact, the only words I want to hear from you tonight is my name or something religious" he continues to kiss her collar bone and neck.

Rachel starts to laugh thinking of the actual last time they had sex. "I think I might have asked for Jesus' praise the last time you had me flipped over in one of those weird positions you got from that stupid book" she shakes her heard. "He just didn't answer because he knows I'm a Jew".

"I don't think we'll need a book to look for anything new. Just plain ol' intercourse might do it for me tonight" he says as he rolls over and lies next to her staring at the ceiling. "Or… just you slipping me your tongue might put me over the edge" he sighs thinking of the four tortures months.

Rachel turns her head to smile at him, and then slips out of bed. "Ok, well, I have to shower and get out of here" she says as she walks towards their bathroom. Finn stares her down like he's never seen a naked girl before.

Before Rachel left for her last performance, Finn was already in the shower. He has 3 newscasts he's doing today because of the holiday. "Finn" she pushes the bathroom door open. "I'm leaving. What time will you be home tonight?" she asked him through the shower door.

"My last sportscast is at 6:30, but I'm on call for the 11 news. I should know by 9 if I have to stay" he said to her as he washes his body.

"Ok, well…we have our cast Christmas party at the bar afterwards…I should be home by that time." _I'd invite you, but no one likes you and I haven't told you about Chicago yet, which I will do once I give you sex, _she thinks. "See you toniiiiiight" she sings as she walks out of the bathroom to leave.

"Bye" he says. _I'd go to the Christmas party if I liked anyone, but they're all giant douches, _he thinks.

When the musical ends and the curtain goes up, Rachel has this feeling of overwhelming accomplishment. This is all about her, and no one else. Since she was a little kid, there was no one that was going to get in the way of her dreams, and she feels like she balanced her dreams and other people in her life pretty well. _Could have gone smoother, but my marriage isn't over, and my co-star and I have reconciled our differences last night. I can definitely handle being the lead in a Broadway musical, and a loving wife…who, well doesn't give it up to her husband…_she thinks as she waives to the crowd. She loves every second of it.

After all the farewell speeches and cries, the cast changes and goes to their Christmas party. Rachel and Nick walk into the bar together holding hands, as they are told by the producers to being as comfortable off stage as they are on. Everyone cheers and whistles, and Nick motions to the bartender to open the champagne and keep it coming.

"I can't get too drunk, I have a date with my husband tonight for Christmas Eve" Rachel tells Nick as he hands her a glass of champagne.

"I didn't know people go on dates with their spouses anymore" he says as he winks at her.

"They don't" she says nodding somewhat serious. "You don't know the half of it" she says smiling as she shakes her head glad this is all over.

"That's fine, I think the bar is only open until 10 tonight anyway" he says as he guides her to the table to see everyone else.

Finn waits around the studio until 8:30 when he gets the go ahead to leave. He texted Rachel to tell her that he's on his way home. She texted him back to say she's still at the party, but she'll be leaving shortly. He's pretty sure he got hard just from her text, and has to keep it together on the subway. Finn texted back telling her to take her time and have fun, they have all night. _That will make me sound more mature and less of a baby, as she always claims I sound like,_ he thinks to himself.

After they announce last call at the bar, Nick announces that they should take their Christmas party back to his apartment. He has a nice 2 bedroom loft, and has been wanting to show it off anyway. Everyone peer pressures Rachel to go, so she does. _Finn said to take my time,_ she thinks. _Besides his place is on the way._

Meanwhile, Finn gets home and throws his coat on the stool in the kitchen, and puts the champagne he bought in the fridge. He grabs a beer for now and walks over to Chad while loosening his tie. "Chad, you didn't know mommy and daddy when we used to be sexually active, but you're about to meet us tonight. I don't know if Patti told you…before you killed her of course… but we've been known to shake the apartment, so don't be scared if your bowl starts to move. It's not an earthquake or anything, you'll be fine" he says as he angles his beer towards the fish bowl and smiles. "Oh, and when mommy screams, it's all good this time…not like the last few times when she was yelling" he lifts his eye brows trying not to remember the last few times she was screaming at him.

_11:30 pm…_

Rachel is easily on her second bottle of champagne, but she's not quite sure how much she really drank. Nick keeps re-filling her glass before it gets to the bottom. They are all talking and having a good time while music is playing in the background. Rachel loves being around theatre people because they're so energetic and playful.

Finn keeps checking his phone to see if Rachel called or texted him back, but nothing. _She's really trying to build this sexual moment up I suppose_, he thinks to himself as he starts to undress. Finn decided to go forego the foreplay and just get undressed now, so he's completely naked when she gets home. He's also not waiting to open the champagne at this point either. He pops it open and toasts with Chad, and brings the bottle and two glasses to their bedroom. _I'll silently wait in the bedroom for her, _he thinks. He's also starting to get real tired from working all day, so he's thinking about taking a quick cat nap before she gets home.

Rachel is now playing twister with some of her cast mates. They're actually playing "strobe light twister", which Rachel and her roommate made up in college. You play with all the lights off, and just a strobe light on. Believe it or not, Nick actually had one in his apartment…she took it as a sign to stay and play. _I mean seriously, WHO has a strobe light handy in their house? _she thinks. "For a little midget like yourself, you're actually pretty good at this Rachel" one of her cast mates said as he tries to push her down.

"Stop it" she giggles. "When we played in college, whoever was the first to fall had to do a shot every time the spinner landed on yellow. I had to learn fast to be good. I'm a lightweight" she said as she's got her butt in the air with her right hand on red, her left foot on blue, and she's tangled up with Nick. People are taking pictures, and she just hopes to God none of this lands on facebook.

Over at the Hudson apartment, Finn starts to doze off with a glass of champagne in his hand. He is naked, alone, and tired….and very horny.

_1:45am_

"Nick! You're out of wine" one of the cast members yelled from Nick's kitchen as they search in the fridge.

"Well, I don't think there's a liquor store open this late on Christmas Eve" he yells back.

"Wait…what time is it?" Rachel says as she turns around to look for a clock in his apartment.

"It's almost 2" Nick says.

"Shit! Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit" she repeats as she sets her glass down and grabs her coat and purse. "I'm sorry guys, I have to go. I meant to leave by midnight, I have no idea where the time went" she says as she starts to kiss everyone goodbye. "Thanks Nick" she yells out as she leaves his apartment.

"Don't forget to check the papers tomorrow for our review" he yells out to her as she runs out the door to the elevator.

_2:15am…_

Finn is out like a light. He is leaned back in the bed, naked, with the glass of champagne perfectly sitting up against his wrist and pillow. The slightest shift will make it spill.

Rachel walks in their apartment. "Finn?" she quietly says hoping he's still up, or at least still home. Rachel hasn't been this drunk since the last time she tried to give Finn that blow job in the cab, and she definitely owes him one. _Or maybe 10,_ she thinks to herself as she walks towards their bedroom. She is definitely drunk, and having a hard time walking straight.

"Finn" she says smiling and feeling bad. She sees him laying there with the glass of champagne and the bottle on ice next to their bed. She goes over to him and takes the glass out of his hand and kisses his forehead. She throws her shirt off right there, and straddles on top of him on his side of the bed. She's over the covers and doesn't realize he's naked at that point. She starts to bend down and place kisses gently all over his face and neck.

"Finn" she whispers in his ear. "Finn baby, come on…" she starts to move her hands down his chest and attempts to pull off his boxers, and then realizes he doesn't have any one. "Oh good, you are already naked…perfect" she smiles and starts to kiss down his chest. She tries to move his hands behind her back so he can unclasp her bra, but he doesn't respond.

"Rach…what time is it?" he says as she moves the sheets down from his body so she can place kisses down his stomach.

"It's time to have sex…come on" she says as she unclasps her bra herself. Finn just puts his hands on her back, but she's doing everything else. This time, she's the one mauling him in bed. She starts to unbuckle her jeans and positions herself on her elbows so she can move them down her legs.

"Rach…I'm too tired now, I waited for you all night" he says as she starts to kiss him, and he barely kisses back.

"Come on Finn…I'm sooooo horny" she says as she gets up from the bed and takes her jeans off by herself. She gets back on Finn, this time slipping under the covers and she's lying over his naked body. She's grinding him, hoping to wake up little Finn, and she can start to feel him come alive. "There you go" she says in between kisses in response to feeling his erection. "Ohhh God, you know how I get when I'm drunk" she says almost out of breath. She needs Finn now.

"Rach…no!" he says as he tries to push her away gently. She ignores his command, and continues to kiss him and go down on him under the covers. She grabs his length and she starts to stroke it, and places her tongue, swirling and playing with the tip. Finn tires to fight this mentally, and not physically. She grabs his ass with one hand, while the other one strokes his shaft as she playfully rubs it to the side of her face as she looks up at him smiling. She continues to bring it back to her mouth, this time getting it as deep as she can, moving her head up and down. Finn is about to lose it, until he moves up to pull away.

"Rachel…NO! I know you get real horny when you drink, but that's your problem now. I waited for hours, and you could have had me. Now you're going to have to wait longer" he says as he starts to sit up. She slowly starts to move up his naked body and kisses his chest.

"I know, I'm sorry. I lost track of time." She continues to kiss up his chest and to his chin.

"Good night Rachel" he says as he shifts to his side. She slides off of him when he shifts over, but doesn't break contact. She continues to kiss his chest as her arm wraps around his stomach, and her leg wraps around his.

"Finn…I'm sorry" she says again. She holds on to him tighter, and Finn can swear he feels her wetness on his leg, as she's wrapped up with him.

_Oh God, I must be some kind of idiot for saying no to this. She's so fucking horny and that blow job would have been amazing…she does the craziest shit when she's drunk,_ he thinks to himself as he opens one of his eyes to glance down at her. _She has to learn her lesson though, and it feels good to put her through what I've been going through the last four months._

_The next morning, Christmas Day…_

Rachel shifts under the sheets, still lying half on Finn. She opens her eyes and admires Finn sleeping, while she tries to get closer to him, but she physically can't, unless he was to be inside of her. _Which is all I wanted last night,_ she thinks. Finn can sense he's being stared at, so he opens his eyes and looks down at Rachel.

"Merry Christmas" she says swirling her fingers around his chest.

"Merry Christmas" he replies back.

It's sort of an awkward silence, and Rachel feels like she has to try and break it since this time it was her fault. "Ok…I was bad. I was VERY bad" she tries to say seductively. "I'll let you figure out the punishment…and I'm hoping it's sexual" she smiles.

Finn tries to fight a smile, because he wants to teach her a lesson…but then he comes up with a better plan. "Actually…" he says very slowly. "I got just the thing. You are going to make me chili today, while I sit and watch football" he says smiling while slowly caressing her arm.

"Huh?" she says confused. _That is NOT what I had in mind._

"I want chili…not any of that vegan shit chili either. I want real chili with real meat and real cheese" he says very seriously.

"But it's Christmas, there are no stores open" she says as she lifts her head up.

"There's a lot of Jews in this town…find one" he says snarky. "Oh and we're out of beer, so you can buy me that too…and expensive beer, nothing on sale" he says.

Rachel sighs and realizes there's no other way out of this. She has to go find a store open on Christmas Day, which is probably miles away from where they live, and make him chili while he watches football all day. _Great,_ she thinks.

"Are we going to have sex at any point today?" she asks while shaking her head in disbelief of what Finn wants her to do today.

"Yeah…you find me chili and beer…and I'll give it up to you" he said smiling, knowing he got her. _Finally! _"Oh and we still have to exchange gifts later too don't forget" he said.

"I haven't" she said as she slowly starts to get up. She looks down at Finn, and then decides to lay back down on top of him. She starts kissing his chest hoping he'll want sex now. "Come… on… Finn" she says in between kisses.

Finn fights her off. "Not before my morning coffee" he says as he takes her arms and lifts her up. She just looks down at him sad. "I think there might be a Starbucks that's open somewhere today" he said trying to make this real difficult.

"Finn!" she says looking at him like he's crazy now. "We have Folgers I can make you" she says throwing her arms up.

"Nahhhh, I really want Starbucks" he says. "Come on…chop chop!" he claps his hands.

Rachel gets up and goes in the bathroom to brush her teeth and get dressed. _The faster I go and find the ONE Starbucks open and the ONE grocery store open, the faster I can have sex and get my Christmas presents,_ she thinks.

30 minutes later when Rachel is about to leave, she comes over to the couch where Finn is sitting and puts her hand out. "I need money" she says.

"Ohhh I'm all out of money. I guess you're buying Broadway star" he says as he keeps flipping the channels on the remote. Rachel just tilts her head and gives him the look of death.

"Fine" she says as she walks towards the kitchen to throw on her Pumas. She spots Finn's jacket on the stool and quietly walks over to it and grabs his wallet from one of the pockets. She motions a "shhh" to Chad as she looked over to the fish bowl. As she's going through it, Finn spots her and yells.

"Hey!" he says as he jumps over the couch to grab the wallet away from her. She's too quick and gets out the door, and Finn can't chase her because he's in his boxers. Finn just shakes his head and goes back to the couch. "Chad, it's going to be a good day of football and food…and sex. But don't tell mommy about the sex thing yet…we'll let her suffer a bit longer" he says as he picks up the fish bowl and brings Chad over to the living room with him to watch football.

When Rachel finally gets home, it's well over an hour and a half. She had to take their car and drive around to 5 different stores to finally find one that's open. Thankfully, she found a 7/11 open that sells beer (and not Starbucks, but their coffee will have to suffice), and since Finn was paying, she got him the most expensive one they had.

"Finn darling" she says as she swings the door open. "I got your coffee, beer and food." She kicks the door shut with her foot and throws his wallet on the table. She spots Finn walking from their bedroom. _Why is he looking so nice?_ she thinks to herself staring him down. He's got a white buttoned down shirt and a nice pair of dark jeans on…_and he smells fantastic!_

Finn walks over to look through the bags to make sure she bought real meat for the chili. He ruffles through the bags and smiles. _Yes,_ he smiles. He purposely leans over Rachel as he takes one of the beers out of the pack and opens it and starts to drink it. "Thanks baby" he kisses her on the forehead. "Chad and I will be over here watching football while you make the chili" he says as he walks back towards the couch. He has Chad's fish bowl next to him by the couch to watch their football game.

_Oh my God, he smells so good. What an ass, he's totally doing this on purpose, _she shakes her head going back to the groceries. "What about your coffee!" she yells out to him in the living room.

"You took too long, it's time for a beer now" he says as he doesn't even turn around to look at her.

Rachel grabs the onion out of the bag and slices it in half with one motion with the knife. Her sexual frustrations are now being taken out on an onion. Even though she's hung over, she decides to take a beer and twists it open with her bare hands as she takes a huge swig of it. She hasn't had beer since college, and definitely hasn't performed a move like that with her hands since those college glory days; but she figures this is going to be a long day. She starts to think that a long neck might be the only penis shaped object she'll get today.

She takes the NY Times out to read their review as well. When she gets to the Theatre section, she spots a pretty nice sized picture of Rachel and Nick holding hands walking into the bar. Rachel spits her beer out, as she was taking another sip while reading the review. In captions, it says "Co-stars of Spring Awakening Have Great Chemistry On and Off Stage – Look Out Chicago". _Ok, we'll just put this paper away for now, thank God Hudson only reads the sports section,_ she thinks to herself.

…_.to be continued_

END OF CHAPTER 10


	11. I Read Men's Fitness for the Articles

_**Alright…this is a short chapter. This is more like chapter 10.5, but according to fanfiction, it's "Chapter 11". THANK YOU SO MUCH for those who love this story, and for those who thinks it's one of their favorites. When I came up with this idea, down to even how I was going to write them, I knew it had the potential to be good, but didn't expect the kind reviews. I almost feel like I'm not worthy! Quick note about Rachel: for those who think she is too mean, I might not be doing a good job conveying her side too well. The irony is that Rachel is my favorite character, and I'm always so mad at Finn when watching Glee…funny how I'm making him look like the nicer one lol. Hopefully you can see her side too, and how she's still a very faithful (pun intended) wife, and how she's torn between her career and her married life. I will try and balance that out better…thanks for the feedback. Ps: I don't think she's a whore though. **_

As the chili starts to cook in the pot, Rachel goes back to leaning on the counter and staring at Finn on the couch.

"Yes!" Finn yells out as Chad Ochocinco, from the Bengals caught the ball and scored a touchdown. "Wait to go Chad" as he looks at Chad, the fish, and clings his beer on the bowl

"Finn, don't do that to Chad, it hurts him" she says as she takes another sip of her beer.

"You don't know that, do you live in a fishbowl?" he says as he turns his head around to look at Rachel. _Whoa she's drinking a beer, that's really hot._

"No, but how you like it if someone hit your house with a giant object 10 times bigger than you?" she argues.

"What?" he looks confused at what she just said.

"I have no idea what I'm talking about either" she sighs as she grabs her beer to go sit next to Finn on the couch. She takes her hand and rubs it down his arm, as she starts to adjust her body to kneel next to him. She starts to lean in closer...

_Don't do that Rachel, please don't do that,_ he thinks to himself. _I won't last._

"Finn, while the chili is cooking…why don't we fool around" she says moving her mouth to his cheek and placing tiny, flirty kisses on him.

"I would normally not be opposed, but you kind of smell like onion and you haven't showered yet today" he said squirming on the couch.

_Fucker. _"Don't you usually love it when I smell like food? You said you're always turned on more" she asks him. She slowly tugs at his top button to unbutton his shirt even more.

"Yeah, well I changed my mind" he says totally lying but trying to make this hard on her. "I smell really good from showering, and I don't want to smell like you" he says as he keeps looking at the TV.

"Fine" Rachel grinds her teeth. "I'm going to go take a shower" she says as she grabs a magazine and walks towards their bedroom.

"Hey, where are you going with Ryan Reynolds?" he asks as he noticed she grabbed his Men's Fitness magazine off the table, which happened to have Ryan Reynolds on the cover.

"Nowhere…I'm going to go read it…"

"In the shower?" he cuts her off.

"In the bathroom…I have to poo if that's ok with you. What are you…a cop?" she rolls her eyes and starts to walk away. Finn gets up and follows her.

"No you don't!" he says standing under their bedroom doorway.

"Finn…how would you know? This is ridiculous!" she said to him as she goes in their bathroom and shuts the door.

Finn opens the door, and Rachel looks at him in shock for not giving up on this. "You are not going to cheat on me with Ryan Reynolds" he said eluding to the fact that she might pleasure herself to the magazine. "I mean, since when do you READ Men's Fitness?" he asks her.

Rachel just stands there by the sink looking at him. "Since when do you READ any of my magazines that always seem to disappear to your side of the night stand?" she fights back. "If you're going to cheat on me with Jessica Alba or Megan Fox, or or uhh what's that other Jessica? " she starts to snap her fingers.

"Biel" he said back.

"AHA! SEE?" she smiles and points her finger as she catches him.

_Damn it. Trap!_, he thought to himself.

"Look, I know you are trying to torture me for with holding sex from you for 4 months, but you are forgetting that I haven't had sex for the 4 months, either. AND, I haven't even had an orgasm. I'm losing it myself here Hudson" she says quietly at the end.

"Yeah, but this was all your doing. I could almost understand the sex, but that's all you on the pleasuring yourself thing" he said throwing his arm up.

"I didn't think it would have been fair to you" she says putting her head down. "I mean, I would have felt worse…and besides, I wanted to fully feel frustrated…I didn't mean for you to either. I just…I wouldn't have felt right if I was to take care of the frustration on my own...I'd some how feel like I was cheating" she said shrugging.

He just stands there staring at her letting her go on…

"I don't know if I messed up or not Finn, but I did what I thought was right for the part. Lots of great actors do research for their roles. Wynona Ryder entered a mental institution once for her role in 'Girl Interupted'" she says almost crying. "And if anything…I'd given you a reason to almost cheat on me. What wife would do this and not want to be scared that her husband might stray because she's not giving it up to him. Isn't that how most infidelity starts in a marriage?" she continues to look down at the bathroom tile.

Finn starts to think he might not have thought of Rachel's side of the no sex thing. He forgets that she also hasn't been able to have sex for the last 4 month_. And it's even worse because she didn't even masturbate throughout this,_ he thinks.

"I'm thirsty" he says as he turns around to walk out of the bathroom.

Rachel's eyes widen, because she can't believe she just spilled her thoughts about this to her husband and he walked away. _Maybe I AM a bitch,_ she thinks. She sighs and shuts the bathroom door and starts the shower. She throws her shirt off, and starts to unbuckle her jeans when she hears a knock at the door. She turns to look at the door, but it's still shut.

"Come in?" she says it like a question. The door slowly opens and Finn pops his head in.

"I just wanted to make sure that you and Ryan weren't doing anything together" he said with his half smile.

"Nope…I had to shut him down. There's only one man in my life" she said as she smiles. Finn walks over to her and puts his hands on her arms.

"You're not going to follow that up with a smart ass comment this time?" he says as he tilts his head waiting for her to respond.

"No" she barely breaths out as she shakes her head, looking at him very serious. There is nothing to joke about this time with either of them.

Finn squeezes her arms as he crashes his lips on to hers. Rachel pushes her body as close as she can, and puts her hands around his neck while throwing her tongue as deep as she can get it inside of Finn. They're moving so quickly, as she tries to climb up on Finn as he's leaning on the bathroom counter. Finn unzips his jeans, and then moves his hands down to her jeans as he unzips them and pulls them just enough down so he can enter her. They don't even bother with any foreplay whatsoever. They both need to connect only physically right now. He turns her around so she's sitting up on the counter as he starts to thrust himself in and out of her. He can barely keep it together as he watches himself and the back of her head in the mirror.

"Rachel…" he says out of breath. Her face is buried in his neck as she soaks in the feeling of Finn being completely inside of her. Finn can only hear her deep breaths and moans, and that's all he wants to hear. He loves everything about Rachel, including her excessive rants, but man does he love when she shuts the hell up: Especially on the account of him pleasing her sexually. She doesn't even say his name…she is way too out of breath, as he pulsates in and out of her. He's never heard her be this quiet before. Usually she's saying something, or even screaming out his name or God's. He can just feel her hot breath on his neck. He even starts to think she might not be enjoying this, until she grabs his hair tight and attempts to push her body even further into him. He's never been so turned on in his life. There's no communication, other than their physical connection, and it's like he knows exactly how she wants it right now. He knows she's about to come at any moment…and there's no need for her to tell him. He can feel it. Their bodies are talking to each other like never before, and Rachel is on the cusp of finally getting her orgasm. Finally, Rachel tightens her grip as her breaths start to become erratic, and lets out a soft screech into his chest. He takes his one hand and leans on the steamed up mirror, as it starts to travel down, and he leaves a mark from the condensation. He finally lets go and releases himself and they come together.

Finn is just as much out of breath as she is, and they ride out their orgasms slowly. She's still gripping onto his hair tight, as she then slowly moves her hands down to his neck. He has his head over her shoulder as he closes his eyes. He starts to hear her cry into his chest, and he starts to feel sad and relieved all at the same time. Talk about confusion. They don't have any eye contact; Finn can only see the back of her blurry body from the steamed up mirror. He doesn't remember if they have ever had sex without any verbal communication like this before. _It was sooo hot,_ he thinks to himself. It was like they knew exactly what each other needed.

Finn lets her cry into his chest as he sets his head down on her shoulder. He knows why she's crying, and he knows to just let her cry and not say anything. She just needs to hold him. They are both sick of the games and the jokes, and there is nothing for them to laugh about. Finn slowly releases out of her, while her head stays buried in his chest. He continues to hold on to her in the steamed up bathroom, and all they can hear is the water from the shower running. They don't say anything.

END OF CHAPTER 11 (or really 10.5)


	12. Blame it on the Tight Dress

_**Ok, thank you for the nice reviews! Here's the next chapter, and it's much longer than the last; might be the longest thus far. Another one of my infamous notes: I'm going to take the story where she/they get to Chicago, and then probably end it there…if anyone was wondering where the hell this is going. Maybe we'll do a "part 2" in the future if you want me to continue? I hope I'm not dragging ya'll along. Just let me know! Thanks and Happy New Year! Ps: my friends and I like to take credit for creating "Drunken Strobe Light Twister, at Illinois State University, circa 2001. **_

_December 26__th__, Day after Christmas…_

Finn wakes up and rolls over in bed and reaches his arm out to touch his wife. He can see she's up, lying on her back and staring at the headboard.

"Mmmmm" Rachel says at his simple touch of him rubbing his hand on her back softly. He moves in closer to kiss her on the cheek, and she takes her arm and puts it around him. They start to kiss while they lie there in each other's embrace.

"It feels so nice to be able to touch you, without you swatting me away" he says while kissing her neck.

"Yeah" she sighs and closes her eyes; squeezing Finn even tighter. _I'm going to have to tell him about Chicago soon, tonight perhaps. _"Finn?" she asks while he continues to kiss down her neck to her shoulder. "Finn?" she repeats because he's pretending not to hear her. She takes her hands and pulls his head up.

"Come on Rach. I'm so sick of you saying my name like that. I like hearing it how you screamed it last night in those handcuffs" he raises his eyebrows, smiling, "when you were just aching for me to stop teasing you with my tongue between your thighs" his smile widens.

"I-I-I know" she stutters. "And I have a feeling for the next 3 months, you'll be hearing your name that way a lot" she sighs, thinking about that sex pass. "But, I was thinking…maybe we can go out to dinner tonight?" she asks thinking it would be better to tell him about Chicago in public.

"Sure…we haven't gone out together, ALONE in a long time actually" he says smiling. "It's a date Ms. Berry" he says going back to kissing her neck.

"MRS. Hudson" she replies emphasizing the Mrs. They continue to kiss as Finn directly rolls on top of her, fully planning on cashing in on his pass just now.

"Finn!" Rachel yells out from the bathroom.

"What darling?" Finn says sarcastically as he's adjusting his tie in the bedroom. They're getting ready to go out to a nice dinner, and they're already running behind because Rachel was out shopping for new shoes to match the dress Finn at bought her for Christmas.

"Come here please and help me with my dress" she demands.

Finn walks to the bathroom and sees Rachel trying to zip up her dress from the back. "Here, I got it" he says as he takes her zipper and zips it up.

"Thanks" she says unplugging her flat iron and shutting the cabinet doors. "Ready?" she asks smiling.

"No. I'd rather go in there and help you unzip the dress now" he says motioning his head to their bedroom.

"Yeah, well, I'm a bit sore from last night and this morning, wouldn't mind a breather Hudson" she hits his shoulder and walks out the bathroom.

Finn follows her as he helps her put on her coat by the door.

"Bye Chad" Finn says waiving to the fishbowl.

"Bye murderer" Rachel says, still bitter about him killing Patti.

While Rachel is waiting inside the foyer downstairs, Finn is outside looking to hail a cab. She notices that blond from the bar a few months back come walking towards Finn. She stops in front of him and they're in conversation.

"Oh geez" Rachel rolls her eyes. "He's probably telling her it's my one year anniversary of me being dead" she says out loud to herself. _Come on, where's that cab?_ She stars to rock on her heals back and forth.

A cab pulls up in front of Finn and his _new girlfriend,_ and Rachel exits the door and walks down the 5 steps to the sidewalk. Finn opens the door and the blond gets in, and he holds the door open for Rachel. Rachel stops in front of Finn and gives him a look of death that all 3 of them are now sharing a cab.

"It's ok babe, come on get in, it's cold" he puts his hand on her back and guides her in the back seat. Finn squeezes in the back, and the cab takes off.

"Stephanie, this is my wife Rachel" he says leaning over to introduce Rachel to the blond from the bar.

"Hi" they both say in unison.

"Sorry about last time, thinking you were the cleaning lady. I didn't know Finn remarried" she said.

"RE-married…" she says as a statement nodding her head. _Man, is he so dead._

"Yeah, it didn't occur to me that you were his wife. The way he was so heartbroken over his first wife's death…I just assumed. But you know what they say about assuming?" she laughs.

Rachel and Finn sarcastically laugh back, Rachel wanting to kill Finn, and Finn scared of Rachel's reaction to not telling Stephanie the truth about him never having a dead wife in the first place.

"Well, yeah..it was really sad, but I am totally in love with this new wife I have here" he says putting his arm around Rachel. She just rolls her eyes in disgust of his fakeness. "She's a Broadway star you know"

"Ohhh really? What play?" she asked.

"It's a musical that just finished up…'Spring Awakening'" she said thinking she's not the type to know anything about the play or Broadway. _She doesn't strike me as the type,_ she thinks.

"Oh my God. You're the LEAD? I saw that musical last month with my sister. We sat so far back that I didn't recognize you. You have a beautiful voice!" she said admiring Rachel.

"Thank you" Rachel smiled, shocked that Stephanie not only knew the musical, but saw it_. I guess I shouldn't assume._

"I read the review yesterday in the paper. I didn't even know you were married the way they portray you and your co-star." She said ready to continue but Rachel cuts her off.

"Yeah!" she yells out anything to get her from continuing, in fear she might mention Chicago. "The producers want us portrayed that way for the public…it's a standard procedure in the entertainment business" she says quickly. "Can't disappoint the fans" she smiles and puts her hand on Finn's thigh.

"At least, that's what she tells me" Finn puts his hand on hers squeezing it a little too hard, in a joking matter for all the shit she put him through.

"Here's where I get out" she says as the cab pulls over. She attempts to give money to the cab, but Finn stops her.

"No no no!" he says grabbing her hand. "It's on us! Happy New Year if I don't see you again" he says as she gets out of the cab.

"Thanks Finn! It was nice to meet you Rachel. Good luck with that musical Rachel" she says smiling shutting the door.

Rachel turns to look at Finn, "Do you plan on seeing her again?" she says.

"Come on Rach…she's manager of the bar right down our block. I go there once and awhile" he looks at her like she should know. "Do you plan on seeing Nick again? Now that the play is over?" he remarks back.

_Actually, yes, yes I do…in Chicago for 3 more months. You don't mind do you? We'll be a thousand miles away in another city, having sex on stage every night,_ _probably staying in the same hotel,_ she thinks as she needs to find a better way to say it.

As their cab pulls up to the restaurant, Rachel gets out and Finn pays the driver. Finn holds the door open and Rachel walks in first. As soon as she walked in, she spotted Nick in the bar.

_Really? _her eyes widen. _There are over six thousand restaurants in New York City, and I pick the one that Nick is at? _She thinks as she can't believe this. _He knows this is my favorite restaurant, I wonder if he did this on purpose._

"Hey babe, let's go wait at the bar, our table won't be ready for another 20 minutes he said" Finn says as he puts his hand on her back to guide her to the bar.

"It's ok Finn…why don't we go somewhere else? I hate waiting. Or-or-or let's just go home and use that pass!" she says looking backwards as Finn keeps pushing her towards the bar.

"Babe, it's Saturday night…20 minutes is nothing. And I thought you wanted to get out of the house to keep me from using the pass for awhile" he asks as he picks his head up and spots Nick. _What the hell? I bet you he knows this is Rachel's favorite restaurant, he's trying to steal my wife! _"You're right! Let's get out of here, I don't think there's a wait at McDonald's" he said trying to turn her around.

"Rachel, Finn! Come sit over here at our table" he yells out to them. Nick is sitting at a high top at the bar with another woman.

_Jesus, do I have to move to Connecticut to escape all these people trying to ruin mine and Finn's marriage_, she thinks to herself; first referring to Stephanie in the cab, now Nick at the restaurant.

"Hey Nick, it's ok. We got a table, we're just going to grab a drink and wait over there" Finn says pointing to the opposite side of the bar near the hostess table. He IS curious of who that woman is, but he doesn't care enough to ask.

"Don't be silly Finn…come sit here. The drinks are on me" he says pulling out a chair for Rachel to sit.

Finn just shrugs and sits at the edge of the high chair at the table, while Rachel sits next to him in the other chair. She is extremely nervous Nick will spill the beans about Chicago before she has the chance to tell him tonight. _Finn will NEVER believe me that I was going to tell him the truth tonight. I have to signal to Nick to keep his mouth shut._

"Let me introduce you guys to my sister, Amanda" Nick says smiling.

_Of course it's your sister Nick…why wouldn't it be a girlfriend or a hooker? Has to be someone you're related to. _Finn thinks. "Nice to meet you" Finn sticks out his hand.

"Hi, so you're the other guy" Amanda jokes.

"Yeah, except I'm actually MARRIED to Rachel, and Nick wishes he was" Finn bites back. _Two points Finn, _he smiles at his remark.

"Oh come on Finn, who wants to be married these days? I'd rather be the boyfriend who gets to have all the fun" Nick starts to laugh, trying to make a _passive aggressive_ joke.

"Ok Nick…come on!" Rachel smiles hoping he stops. "My husband gets to have plenty of fun" she smiles putting her hand on his thigh.

"I know, I'm kidding..really I am" he smirks. "Truce Finn?" he puts his hand out for Finn to shake it.

Finn just stares him down at the table, but realizes he gets to go home and fuck Rachel all night, meanwhile Nick's stuck with his sister. "Truce" he shakes his hand.

"Actually, I'm glad you guys are here" Nick said.

"It's Rachel's favorite restaurant, how convenient of YOU to be here Nick" Finn smirks.

Nick just ignores Finn's comment and continues, "I want to invite you to my New Years Eve party. I wasn't going to have one, but Christmas Eve was so much fun, that I figured let's break the new year in style again!" he says excitingly. "The whole cast will be there Rachel" he says turning to her.

"Oh my God, Rachel I saw the pictures from the Christmas Eve party on Facebook. They were hilarious! You were so intense during Twister" Amanda laughs.

"Facebook? Twister? Nicks' house? I thought you guys went to the bar?" he asked with so many questions.

"The bar closed early, and Nick had us all over impromptu, it was no big deal Finn. I haven't seen the pics yet actually" she jumps in. "I think the party sounds like fun, and this time, Finn can come!" Rachel says nodding her head, trying to distract from the mention of the Facebook pics and Twister. She really wants to go, and she wants Finn to go, hoping he can try one more time and get alone with the cast.

"You didn't see the pics guys?" Nick asks them both.

"Well Finn isn't on Facebook anymore, he got rid of his account after college when he was looking for a job. Too many drunken Frat party pics" she says hitting his shoulder.

"Well, she MADE me get rid of it" he looks at her intensely. "Besides, half of those pics were in your dorm playing drunken, strobe light twister!" he says.

"You got the JOB didn't you?" she grinds her teeth asking.

"Drunken, Strobe light twister, that's what we…OW!" Nick said as Rachel hit his knee not being able to finish his sentence.

"Well…I have to work that night actually" he says taking a sip of his beer.

"Until Midnight?" Rachel turns to ask him

"Well I have to do the news in between Seacrest, by the time I get out, it might be midnight already" he says shrugging his shoulders.

"Oh DARN, but hey Finn…the party will go way past midnight, so just come over after. I guess your wife might have to kiss someone else when the ball drops" he says smiling.

_Over my dead body you mother fucking, Brad Pitt wannabe,_ Finn thinks.

"Oh come on Nick…Finn knows I'll wait to give him the first kiss of the new year" she says comforting him. "We'll discuss it tonight, I'm sure you can rush right out after your sportscast" she says.

"OH, you're on Channel 4! That's where I've seen you!" Amanda says to Finn, recognizing him from TV.

"That's him, he's the sportscaster" Rachel answers for him, proud that he got recognized.

"You're very cute on air. I love it when you sometimes misread the teleprompter. The other night you said 'the quarterback lost his balls, when he tried pulling out of the tight end'" she said laughing. "Oh my, everyone was laughing so hard behind that desk" she continues to laugh. "I almost pee'd my pants, when I saw your face turning white, looking around to try and find a way to fix your mistake".

"Well, they do that to me on purpose, because they know I won't catch it and I'll continue to read it. I think it's because I'm a rookie" he says with his half smile, embarrassed. _Yeah, that's it._

"It's ok. I think it's funny. You are really cute to watch, and very good looking in person….NOT that you're not good looking on TV" Amanda says holding her hand up.

"Thanks" he said with a big smile and lifting his chest just a bit.

_Oh brother,_ Rachel thinks while she stares this love fest down. However, she's happy the focus is off of her and Nick.

"Finn, I think our table is ready. Our hostess is waving us down" she says turned to Finn.

"No, you guys should just stay here and we can all eat together. We haven't ordered anything" he said looking at Rachel.

"That's fine with me" Finn says smiling back at Amanda. He loves the attention he's getting from Amanda, because he thinks she might be his first fan.

"Finn darling, I wanted to talk to you tonight alone" she said whispering in his ear, tugging slightly on his arm.

"No Rach, it's ok. We can talk at home. We haven't gone out with another couple in awhile" he said softly back.

"Baby, you just said we haven't gone out ALONE together in awhile, now you want to stay?" she asks him.

"Rachel, they're both looking at us. Please, it's my first fan, let me enjoy this" he says biting his lip, because he wants her to stop trying to get him to leave the table.

"Ok, we'll eat here" she says to everyone at the table. The waiter comes by and gets everyone's drink order. _I have to figure out how to tell Nick not to mention Chicago. This is not good._ Rachel brings out her phone and decides to text Nick not to say anything yet, because she hasn't told Finn. She hates that it's come to her sneaking behind Finn's back, but she really did plan on telling him tonight, and God is playing an awful joke on her tonight. _First with Stephanie almost spilling the beans, and now with Nick and Finn's number one fan, _she sighs hoping he gets the text before anything is said.

"Finn, no scotch tonight eh?" he says smiling.

"Old joke Nick, might want to pull something new out" he said barking back fast.

"Touche" Nick says lifting his glass up to air toast him. Finn is glad he's finally starting to get a hang of how to handle Nick and his diva attitude.

"Thanks Nick, too bad it's too late to finally get along" he says smiling. "If only we had one more month of that musical.

_Ohhh nooooo,_ Rachel thinks. "Nick! Can you call the waiter over, you ordered the wrong champagne" she says quickly.

"What are you talking about? This is the one you always get. Unless you're changing your taste buds for Chicago?" he says smiling.

Rachel turns white. She's the same color Finn is when he misreads the teleprompter, although the difference is that she can't blame the producers for typing in the wrong words for her to say.

"Chicago?" Finn asks, looking at Rachel, who is staring down at her glass of champagne.

"...iiiiiiis my favorite band" she says trying to mislead Nick's statement. "Yep, so who wants to order an appetizer?" she asks the table. Amanda just stares at all 3 of them not knowing what's going on, while Finn just keeps staring at Rachel waiting for her to say more, and Nick is confused that Finn might not know they're going to Chicago.

"Did you not tell Finn, Rachel?" Nick asks her while still looking confused. "Are you not going? We've had this planned for 2 months now!" he is starting to wonder if she's keeping something from HIM.

"Rachel…can you please explain to me what you've had planned for 2 months?" Finn asks while he squeezes his hands and his knuckles look like they're going to burst.

"This is what I wanted to talk to you about tonight" she quietly says looking at Finn, hoping he won't cause a scene. "Maybe we can go home now and talk about it?" she asks him.

Finn fidgets on his chair and takes a deep breath. "You had 2 MONTHS to tell me about this" he says quietly trying to not go ballistic at the table, in front of his only fan.

"Finn…" she put her hand on his, "It's been very stressful in our home lately, and I couldn't find the right time to tell you. I-I-I figured to wait till after Christmas…"

"NO! " he interrupts her. "You were not waiting 'till after Christmas. You were waiting until we got to FUCK, so then I wouldn't be as upset" he says loud enough for everyone to hear.

Suddenly, Amanda's eyes widen as she looks at her cute sportscaster differently now. Nick avoids eye contact in disbelief of what he just said, and the table next to them threw their forks down wondering if they heard what they just heard. And Rachel…well, Rachel's white complexion almost went transparent.

"Ok" she says trying to avoid his embarrassing statement, "I would say NOW, it's time to go" she fakes a smile and gets up to put her coat on. Finn just sits there for 2 seconds longer staring at her in anger.

"Yeah" he agrees. He gets up and puts his coat on, and takes a 20 dollar bill out of his wallet and throws it on the table for their drinks.

"It's ok Finn…I told you the drinks are on me" he says taking the 20 and trying to hand it back to Finn.

"It's ok. I don't want to have to owe you for a next time, because I won't be around next time" he said. No one really knows what he meant by that, but he's mad and has had enough.

"Ohhhhhh" Nick makes a face when he sees Rachel's text about not telling Finn about Chicago. "Yeah, I just got this" he says with a sad face showing it to Rachel.

"Just got what?" Finn grabs the phone from his hand.

"Finn! That's not your phone" she yells at him.

Finn reads the text and the veins on his forehead are about to pop. Finn just looks up at Rachel in disbelief, "Aaaand, you guys are texting behind my back too? Great, I wonder what else you guys talk about…. Or DO?" he says nodding. "Let's go" he says walking in front of Rachel, towards the door.

"Wait Finn…can I get a picture?" Amanda asks as he's walking out. Rachel and Nick just look at her like she's crazy.

"By Nick…I'll talk to you later" she says sighing.

"Yeah, let me know if you make it out alive kid" he says. "I'm here for you…call me later if you need a place to stay" he says.

_Thank God Finn didn't hear him say that,_ she thinks as she walks out the door of the restaurant.

Rachel gets in the cab that Finn had already hailed. She's surprised he waited, unlike last time.

"Ok, you're mad at something else, because you knew my line of work, and bringing the play to Chicago is no big deal. I almost moved to L.A. last year for that TV pilot opportunity" she says to him in the cab, as it pulls away.

"No see Rachel…that's where you have it wrong. I don't care if you were moving to Timbuktu, it's the fact that you didn't TELL ME. You knew for 2 months!" he yells.

"I didn't TELL YOU", she mocks him, "…because you are a baby who couldn't handle the musical 12 blocks away. And you can fight it all you want, but all you care about is sex. Everything on your mind for the last 4 months was sex Finn" she says as she notices the cab driver 's eyes widen through the rear view mirror.

"It APPEARS that all I care about is sex because you put a ban on it for four months. All this, while you were grinding pretty boy on stage" he tries to convey his point.

"No, don't take 43rd street!" they both say in unison as they turn to look towards the cab driver. The cab driver turns his signal off and stays straight, and Finn and Rachel go back to arguing.

"Well, it makes me wonder about you in the first place. I wonder if I couldn't have sex for any other reason, if you would stick around as my husband. I just never noticed how crazy you were about it, because I always gave you sex enough times during the week to keep you satisfied" she says as she notices the cab driver's eyes looking around again in the mirror.

"Rachel, that's ridiculous. I obviously am still around, and we didn't do it for four months. For you to paint me as Tiger Woods is insane" he rolls his eyes.

"Ok look Finn" she tries to lower her voice so the cab driver doesn't repeat this story to everyone else he picks up tonight. "I GET that point, I do. And yesterday, I think you saw the sexual frustration I had. It's just that your reaction is so childish, that it makes me think you can't handle this like an adult. I'm scared to tell you anything, because someone, usually Nick, ends up with a black eye. I just need you to trust me more" she says putting her hand on his thigh.

"Turn at 8th Ave, there's construction on 7th!" they both yell again in unison to the cab driver, as he almost passed it up.

Finn turns back to look at Rachel, "I do. The problem is Rachel, I don't know if you trust me. If you trusted me 2 MONTHS ago when you found out about Chicago, this might not be an issue." he says looking out the window.

"Maybe I don't tell you because your reactions are those similar to a 2 year old" she turns and looks out her side of the window.

"2 year old? You're the one who goes out to Nick's house ON Christmas Eve, and stays way passed what you should stay!" he says.

"Oh, so you're telling me what I should and should not do? I didn't do anything but have fun at that party and I lost track of time. I apologized already for that. Don't act like you've never gone out with your friends, or alone with your girlfriend at that bar and stay way past what you SHOULD stay" she says irritated. "Such a double standard!"

"Stop right here!" they both yell at the cab driver.

The driver just shakes his head and smiles at the fighting couple. They both attempt to get money out, and Rachel beats him to it.

"Oh great, you got to beat me at everything don't you?" he says referring to her getting her money out faster for the cab. She just rolls her eyes and gets out and slams the door before Finn can get out. "Real mature Rachel, who's the 2 year old now?" he says as he opens the door and gets out.

"Good luck you two, maybe I'll see you on divorce court" the cab drivers yells out as he drives away.

"Fuck you!" they both yell out in unison towards the cab.

Growing up in Ohio, Rachel would never have imagined telling a cab driver to fuck himself, let alone say the word out loud, but being a New Yorker has really toughened her up. It's also made them not even realize how they both have become New Yorkers in the past few years; telling the cab driver the best way to go, and yelling at him for his smart ass remark would be something neither of them would have done when they first moved here. But, since they're both in the heat of their own argument, they don't even realize just how far they've come…especially together.

They both start walking up towards their apartment, and they both get a sinking feeling like they've been in this situation not too long ago. Neither of them say anything, because they're both scared to piss off the other one even more than they already have. Finn sighs as he opens the door, and Rachel follows throwing her purse on the kitchen counter. Finn sits on the chair to take his shoes off, as Rachel continues to walk towards their bedroom with hers still on. Finn just sits in the chair for a moment to collect his thoughts, while he listens to the sound of the clicking from Rachel's shoes on the wood floor.

After a few minutes, Finn gets up and decides to go get ready for bed as well. He makes sure everything is locked and turned off before walking in their room, when he sees Rachel struggling to get her dress unzipped. He just walks right passed her into the walk in closet so he can take his pants off to hang them up. _Otherwise, Rachel calls the dry cleaning police on me_, he thinks.

When he gets out, he continues to walk on passed her, as he goes in the bathroom to pee and brush his teeth. She gives him a look of death, as she's determined to get her dress unzipped by herself. He walks out of the bathroom and closes the room darkeners, while he still ignores Rachel who is desperately trying to get out of her dress.

_What an asshole_, she thinks to herself, contorting her body to get that dress off. Finn moves under the covers and slides into bed. Rachel just stands there by her side of the bed and just looks at him.

"Oh, I'm sorry, do you need HELP with something?" he asks her.

"No, I'm good" she says not wanting to admit she needs his help. Finn just rolls over in bed while Rachel tries to figure a way out of this dress. "If you didn't buy me such a tight dress, perhaps I could get out of it", she murmurs under her breath.

"I heard that" he says.

"Good!" she says trying to pull her right arm out over her shoulder.

Finn looks up to see what she's doing and laughs internally. _This is fun, watching her struggle_, he thinks. "It's never your fault babe is it, it's always someone else's" he says referring to him buying the dress too tight and that's why she can't get out of it.

"You picked a fine time to not want to help me OUT of my clothes Hudson" she says with half her face inside the dress.

Finn rolls his eyes and gets out of bed to help her. "Thanks" she says as he gets the dress unzipped. She walks in the bathroom to get ready for bed, and when she comes out 15 minutes later, he's sound asleep.

When Rachel gets to bed, she feels a giant force hover over her within milliseconds of her sliding under the covers. "You've GOT to be kidding me" she says as Finn is lying on top of her kissing her shoulder gently.

"What?" he says moving his hands down to her breasts and bringing his mouth to her neck.

"I can't even begin to describe how crazy you sound by wanting sex from me right now" she says as he continues to kiss her neck and move his mouth down to her chest. "Especially after what we talked about, and aren't you supposed to be mad at me for not telling you about Chicago"?

"No way…am I not going…to use this 3 month pass…I don't care if you shot my foot off…and fed it to…the New York city rats" he says in between kisses while caressing her breasts.

"Finn that's just crazy. YOU'RE crazy!" she says putting her hands on his back allowing him to suck on her breasts.

"Then stop me" he says lifting his face up and looking in her eyes.

She takes her hands and puts them on Finn's shoulders to try and stop him. He continues to suck on her nipples while ignoring her force. He then takes his right hand and grabs her left and pushes it down playfully on the bed.

"Fiiiiiin, come on! You know you're too strong for me" she says whining as he stays directly on top of her. He knows she likes it, otherwise he would respect her and get off. He recognizes the tough girl that told that cab driver to fuck off tonight, and it aroused him even more.

"We'll talk about Chicago tomorrow, and what it is that I'll have to suffer through next, but I will be damned if you ruin any of my 3 month pass" he says while moving his mouth up to hers and kissing her passionately.

Rachel lets him deepen this kiss, because she doesn't want to hear him cry about not being able to use the pass correctly. _He'll whine even more like a baby,_ she thinks. What she won't tell him, is that she wants it just as much as he does. _One of us has to stay strong._

END OF CHAPTER 12

_Next chapter…New Years Eve_


	13. New Year, New Sheets

_**Thank you EVERBODY for reviewing, liking, favoriting the story. You guys are so much fun! I love reading your reviews…so grateful you like the story so far. I am sorry it took awhile to get this out. I am crossing my fingers you like it! I hope I didn't stray from my style of writing…and also, I read that glee is doing "need you now", and I think this chapter would totally have that song in it. You'll see what I mean as you read it **____** …. I will say, it is NOW the longest chapter I've written so far, and I think I have a killer ending to it, so I think ya'll will like it. Thanks for the suggestions, etc. I wasn't going to put a baby, pregnant story in with this strory, but if you guys want me to do a part 2 with them as a family, I'd be happy to start writing one after this story ends. I'm thinking this one needs another 3 or 4 chapters. Thanks guys! Please let me know if you don't like this one, and I will slap myself for being bad. This chapter ends differently then I usually write.**_

_New Years Eve 11:00am…_

"Finn…you're giving me money so I can go buy new sheets today" Rachel says putting her hand out to Finn, who's sitting on the couch reading the paper.

"Why?" he says as he puts the paper down to glance up at her.

"Because the chocolate sauce that you insisted to squeeze all over me the other night, will not come out of the wash. See?" she holds up the sheets to show Finn.

_Damn it! That IS my fault. It took her a lot of convincing to do that. _"Wallet is on my dresser in the bedroom" he sighs.

Rachel goes to get his wallet and comes back out, "Do you want to come with me?" she asks.

"To Bed Bath and Beyond? No…there's no time" he says planting his face back in the paper.

"You're funny" she smirks.

"Yeah? Did you like that little movie reference there?" he says smiling.

"No, I mean you're funny thinking I'm going to Bed Bath and Beyond. This is Williams Sonoma worthy" she says grabbing his credit card out of his wallet.

"Williams Sonoma?" he throws his paper back down to look at her.

"Or Pottery Barn" she says as she walks towards the kitchen to put her shoes on, and toss the chocolate stained sheets in the garbage.

"Wait! Don't throw those out!" he says running to get them before she dumps them.

"Why? They're stained. I should have known the chocolate wouldn't come out of the white" she sighs. "The way I've been having to wash sheets lately, we're going to need at least 2 more extra sets" she says.

"Yeah, but keep these. They'll be our 'food sheets'" he says smiling holding on to them.

"That's gross. You're gross." She says throwing her coat on.

"Says the girl who let me lick chocolate sauce out of her…"

"OK!" she interrupts. "We can keep them" she puts her hand out on the sheets. "I'll see you later, what time are you going to work?" she asks.

"I have the 6pm news and the 11pm news. I'll probably leave at 4, will you be back by then or are you and my credit card going to hang out all day?" he asks her.

"No, I'll be back way before then. Unless your credit card wants to take me out to lunch" she says giggling as she playfully punches Finn's shoulder and walks out.

"Fine, but I'm going to go put our 'food sheet's back on and eat buffalo wings in bed" he yells out to her in the hall as she walks down the stairs. She just keeps walking and pretends he did not just yell that out for people in the building to hear.

When Rachel gets to the mall, she gets a text message from Nick making sure she'll be at the New Years Eve party tonight. She texts him back saying that she'll be there, and Finn will come straight from work. Rachel starts to think of the things she had to do to get Finn to agree to going…and even back to why she's at the mall buying new sheets in the first place…

_3 days ago…_

"What is that?" She sees Finn standing under the doorway of their bedroom, holding a bottle of chocolate syrup.

"It's chocolate syrup" he says as he has this mischievous smile on his face.

"I know what it is…I meant, what is it doing in our bedroom?" she asks pulling herself up from the bed.

"Please fulfill one of my fantasies?" he pleads, slowly walking towards her.

"To make ice cream sundaes?" she asks hoping that's what it is, but knowing full well it's not.

"Sorta, but ice cream isn't involved" he says kneeling down on the bed and throwing the sheets off of Rachel. "There could be a cherry involved" he smiles.

"Finn, you can join me under the sheets, but Hershey is keeping his cap on, and going back in the kitchen where he belongs" she demands pushing her arm against Finn, as he's hovering over her. She's not sure what exactly he's going to do at this point, but he's been pushing the limits lately ever since he began the 3 month pass. _Damn it, I should have given a limit on how many times, not how many months. At this rate, we're doing it like twice a day. I better see my doctor and make sure my birth control is strong enough to withstand the activity, _she sighs shaking her head.

"Hershey has never seen a naked girl before, and I promised him one peek" he says as he lifts her tank up and opens the cap with the other hand.

"Finn, you're dead if this syrup touches our sheets or my tank. If it gets CLOSE to my hair, I'm calling a divorce lawyer" she threatens him. He's actually not sure if she's joking about the last part. Finn takes his free hand and holds Rachel's arm over her head, while he takes the syrup and squeezes it on her stomach. "OW that's COLD!" she yells pulling him away from her.

"I just took it out of the fridge" he laughs, then bends down to start licking it off of her stomach.

"Yeah, no shit!" she starts to laugh in disbelief he actually did it. But the feeling of contrast from his warm tongue and cold syrup actually sends a charge through her body. She lets him continue, and within the hour…Hershey was empty.

_2 days ago…_

"Hi babe, I'm home" Finn says as he enters their apartment, late from work. "Oh you cooked, how sweet" he says as he looks at the counter, that is clear of any hint of cooking.

"In the fridge smart ass…you are over an hour late" Rachel yells from the couch watching a movie.

"Yeah sorry, I got stuck in a meeting. They might start sending me out on location with the Knicks" he said grabbing the food out of the fridge.

"That's cool…it will suck that you will be traveling though" she turns around to look at him with a frown. _Please God, start sending him out this week. I know it's only been 5 days, but my body needs a rest._

"Yeah, not to all the games, but to any national games." He says as he heats his food up in the microwave.

Rachel goes back to watching her movie, while Finn continues to talk about work. He notices she's not listening, so when his food is done, he brings it over to the couch and sits next to her. She doesn't even turn to look at him, because she's halfway through her movie, and it's getting intense. Finn notices she's into it, so he grabs the remote and changes the channel to ESPN.

"Hey!" she yells trying to grab the remote back.

"No way, I'm not going to sit here and watch Lifetime" he says sitting on the controller.

"Then don't…Shew fly! Shew fly!" she motions her arms to waive him goodbye.

"Come on, all I heard the last four months was about your work, and how it's tough on you to be a wife and the lead. I'm trying to tell you ONE thing about my work, and you're not paying attention!" his voice starts to get louder.

"You're right" she sighs. "Please tell me more" she asks as he starts to go into football, then basketball, then hockey, and then where they might send him for spring training for baseball. He then started to talk about where they go to get take out for work.

She started to realize at that point, that maybe he doesn't always think of sex, but she only thinks so because she never listens to him when he talks about other things; like sports. Of course, right when she was about to give him the benefit of the doubt, he goes to their bedroom to come out wearing only his boxers and holding the go-go fish cards he bought her for Hanukkah.

"Oy vey" she rolls her eyes.

"Remember these?" he shows her the cards smiling. He walks over to the couch to start shuffling.

Within the hour, Rachel didn't realize all the stripper positions she can get into, without using the pole. Finn was quite impressed at her flexibility.

As Rachel snaps out of her daydreaming…she's greeted by Nick in front of The Pottery Barn. After she told him where she was, he decided to meet her out.

"So what are we shopping for?" Nick asked her as they start to walk inside the store.

"Sheets" she said walking towards the bedding section.

"Sounds like fun" he says sarcastically. "So…you guys ruining the ones you have?" he winks and nudges her shoulder. Rachel starts to turn red from his comment, and Nick recognizes it. "Sorry! I-I-I didn't mean to get personal, it's just that it was hard not to hear what was said at the table the other night…well, the entire restaurant heard I think. Plus, I figured we are pretty comfortable with each other" he says looking around.

"No, it's ok...Finn was pretty vocal about it" she says as she shrugs. "Besides, I sort of have a confession to make to you? I was contemplating telling you this before, but now after Finn's behavior at the restaurant the other night, I'm thinking I should shed some light on why he's acting the way he is." Rachel looks slightly down towards Nick's feet.

"Oh?", Nick says as he's is hoping this confession has something to do with a divorce between Finn and Rachel. He stays quiet and allows her to continue…

"Oh geez, I haven't told ANYONE this…and I'm slightly embarrassed because I'm worried you'll think I'm not a good enough actor to be able to separate my personal life with my professional", she says as she grabs his arm to guide him to a quiet corner of the store.

"What is it Rachel?" Nick nervously laughs.

"In order to get ready for the part of Wendla, I decided to be celibate" she says extremely quiet.

"Celibate?" he asks wanting her to elaborate.

"I decided, for the sake of the musical, to really feel the character. I was trying to get into the role…I wanted to know what it was like to truly BE the part." She lifts her head and looks at Nick with her big brown eyes. "I didn't say anything because I'm pretty shy when it comes to personal things like that with my husband…and more so, I don't want you to think I can pull off this character without doing such a drastic move" she says.

"Ohhhh, so this might explain all the tension" he starts to nod his head.

"So you get it now?" she matches his smile. "This is my first, serious lead role, and I wasn't about to compromise it. I wanted to do whatever was possible to be perfect at this, and I know it's common practice for many actor's to do research for their roles." She says still holding on to his arm.

"I admire you" he smiles, and putting his hand under her chin, lifting her face to look at his. "First off, I do not think any less of your acting abilities. I think more of you now, because only the great actors would do such a thing. This is why it's hard to be married in this profession. We actors have to establish ourselves before we can settle down" he says lifting his head up snobbishly. "Also, other people in our lives can tend to get in the way, or have opinions about things that they don't even know about" he says.

"I know" she sighs agreeing. Rachel was thinking the same thing when she first found out she got the role. She knew this would be tough on her, just as much as Finn. "I DO think Finn has grown a lot these last four months, but I'm going to be honest…it scared me to tell him I wanted to back off on the sex" she hesitantly says. She is not sure if she should be sharing this with Nick, but he's the only one who truly understands what it's like to be this part. "But, you're right…I can't expect him to understand because no one will really understand" she says seriously.

"I understand" he says putting his hand on her shoulder. Nick wants Rachel to feel like he's the only one who understands her.

"Finn is a wonderful husband, and I love him so much. I just didn't want you to think ill of him; due to his…well, his craziness the last four months. He would never be jealous, but our stage chemistry, mixed with me not being intimate with him…it's just put him at wits end" she says as she tries to reason Finn's point of view.

"I get it Rachel. You had to do what you had to do, and anyone who respects and understands your work, should respect your decisions" he said trying to agree with her. "So what are you going to do about Chicago then?" he asks her as they start to walk around the store.

"The same. I kind of figured it wouldn't be a problem at all, due to the fact that we'll be in different cities anyway" she says picking up a package of sheets. "But to be honest with you, we haven't really talked about the details yet" she said sighing.

"Yeah, but I heard they might move it up to mid January" he says.

"What?" she looks at Nick puzzled. "No one told me that" she said. "That's like 2 weeks away, and well…NOT 3 months" she said startled.

"No one told anyone that. I happen to find out this morning because I'm tight with one of the producers. We're getting a lot of buzz lately, and they don't want it to fizzle out." He said stopping in front of her. "That's what we're going to talk about on Monday at the meeting. Rachel, do you understand what this means? We are eligible for a Tony nomination coming up this summer. They're going to test" he said looking at her.

_Oh shiiiit,_ Rachel thinks to herself. She doesn't say much after that because too many things are twirling around her mind. She can't believe Nick just said "Tony nominations", but then she is overwhelmed how she's going to tell Finn all of this.

They both walk up to the register so she can purchase her sheets and kiss each other goodbye. "See you tonight at 9!" Nick says as he waives why she walks away.

When Rachel gets home, Finn is already halfway dressed for work. "Hi babe" she says entering their apartment.

"Hey, did you buy the most expensive sheets?" he asked shaking his head as he walked towards the kitchen.

"Of course, your credit card was very understanding" she says as she drops the bag on the counter in the kitchen next to Chad. "Why are you dressed so soon, I thought you're not leaving until 4".

"Staff luncheon today, just got a text" he said as he starts to grab his coat. "I'll probably stop home to change before I go to Nick's, so expect me right at, or a bit after midnight" he said as he starts to walk towards her. He puts his arms around her waist and looks down at her and smiles.

"Ok" she says smiling. "I won't have fun 'till you get there" she says smiling and then kisses him.

"You're cute" he kisses her back. "I know you're full of it, but you're still cute" he says as he slaps her butt and walks out their apartment.

When Finn gets outside of their 3 story walk up, he spots Stephanie walking towards the bar.

"Hey Finn" Stephanie says as she stops to talk to Finn. "What are you and Rachel doing tonight? Want to come to the bar?" she asks.

"Actually we were invited to a party" he says smiling. "But thanks for the invite"

"Come by before you go to the party then" she says. "Drinks on me" she says as she grabs his arm.

"I'm actually working and then meeting Rachel there late, but maybe I'll stop by before I head out to the party. Can I play it by ear? Depends how quickly I get out of work and navigate back in the city, with the huge crowds…you know how it is" he says.

"You got it. Would love for you to stop by…I'll save you a seat at the bar" she winks as she continues to walk. Finn watches her walk away and then turns around to walk towards the subway.

It's a little after 9 and Rachel hasn't left yet. She's trying to find the perfect outfit to wear to Nick's tonight. Everyone will be there, plus she wants to put something sexy on for Finn. _Although, what if we start playing games again?_ She asks herself as she looks in the mirror. "Sexy, casual, sexy, casual?" she asks herself out loud contemplating her outfit choice. Rachel starts to think of Nick's comment about moving Chicago to mid-January, and she stays with the most sexiest outfit she has. She looks in the mirror one more time before she leaves and smiles.

On the way to Nick's place, Rachel texted Finn. _::I put something on very special for you sweetheart, can't wait to be the first person you kiss in the new year::_

Finn responds by saying _::awesome::_

And when Rachel reads his response, she laughs because she knows he's a man of little words. But she knows there are a lot more words going on in his hand.

When Rachel arrives at Nick's, there are already tons of people there. They all get excited when they see her, and Rachel is so overwhelmed that she finally made it. She has wanted all her life to be a star and be accepted by her peers. She realizes in that moment that she has everything she's always wanted. A handsome, successful husband, and a lead role in a Broadway play. _I never want this night to end,_ she thinks to herself. She has so much to be grateful for this year, and this is by far, her favorite new years eve to celebrate ever.

"Rach!" Nick says as he walks over to kiss Rachel. "Wow, you look amazing tonight" he said as he hands her a glass of champagne.

"Thanks…you look pretty good yourself Nicholas" she said smiling. Nick is also dressed very nice.

Rachel takes a sip of her champagne and begins to mingle with everyone. She runs into Nick's sister Amanda who asks her about Finn.

"Hey Rachel, Finn will be here tonight right?" Amanda asks her excitingly.

"Yeah, he should hopefully get here right before midnight" she says smiling knowing Amanda might have a slight crush on Finn. _Little does Finn know, I am the one who should be jealous all the time. My husband is extremely handsome and on TV a few times a week,_ she thinks to herself.

"Rachel" Nick comes over and fills her glass up. "We got a lot to celebrate this year" he says smiling.

"Yes…we certainly do" she says putting her hand on his arm.

"Ready for the meeting on Monday? We'll be talking Chicago…talks of the Tony's…and possibly coming back to New York to continue the musical here. Looks like we'll be employed for all of 2011" he says smiling clinging her glass with his. "I heard you and I have a chance to be nominated for 'breakthrough performance'..can you imagine? THIS June, being at the Tony's?" he said laughing.

"It feels like yesterday when we were at the bar, talking about getting a bigger mantel for all our awards" she said laughing back.

"Start looking for a bigger apartment!" he says smiling.

"Well…let's not get ahead of ourselves" she giggles. "But, this is something I certainly have focused on since I was 3 months old" she said looking off into space.

"Hey Rachel! Your hubby is on TV" a cast mate yells out form the living room.

Rachel runs in the living room to watch the news. Finn is almost finished with his short sports report, and Rachel thinks he looks so cute.

"Any plans for the new year Finn?" Jillian, the meteorologist asks Finn when he's done with his report.

"I do. Actually, I want to say real fast, to my lovely wife, Happy New Year baby if I don't get to see you before the new year. I love you." He says smiling looking into the camera.

"Awww Finn…well at least we know of one couple in love" Jillian says. "We'll be back after the break" she says going to commercial.

"Ohhh someone's gonna get laid tonight" one of her cast mates pokes her to make fun. Rachel just blushes and takes a sip of her champagne.

Nick comes walking in the living room, "Ok guys, let's throw some music on before the ball drops" he yells out to everyone. He turns the TV off, and walks over to his ipod docking station to play some tunes.

_Back at the TV station…_

"Hey Finn" Rob the entertainment guy says to Finn. "I heard your wife's musical is a big deal. I'm doing a piece on them next week before they move to Chicago for 90 days." He says to him.

"They're not going to Chicago until end of March" he says looking confused.

"No, because of the Tony awards, they moved them up. They might be performing as the breakthrough musical. Just got word earlier this week…sorry if I broke the news to you before your wife got to tell you. There's a chance she might not know. I just found out." He said.

"Oh" Finn said starting to feel the anxiety rising. _I'm so sick of hearing news about the musical before Rachel tells me!_

"I'm just giving you a heads up man, I got some pictures of her and her co-star out at the mall today too. They really have them pegged as the new couple of Broadway." He said putting his hand on his shoulder. "But don't be alarmed, it's nothing to be worried about. They're just the new breakthrough couple. Nothing sexual I'm sure" he says smiling as he pats his back and walks away.

"Yeah" he says giving his half smile. _God damn it. He met her at the mall today to buy our sheets? Why does Rachel get to be the 'it' couple with someone else, while I sit around watching my wife have a fantasy boyfriend?_ He thinks to himself. _I'm in the entertainment business too…in fact, I'm in television…I should be sought out after too. Maybe it's time for me and Rachel to establish ourselves separately. _Finn starts to think he might not go to this party, while he throws his coat on to leave for the night. _I don't want to be Mr. Berry._ He looks at his watch, and it's 11:39pm_. I think I have time to grab a drink at that bar,_ he thinks. 

Finn leaves and arrives at the bar at 11:56pm. "Finn!" yells out Stephanie. "You came, and boy did you just make it!" she says smiling.

"Yeah I certainly did!" he says grabbing a seat at the bar. Stephanie had promised him she'd save him a seat, and she did. There was a vacant stool at the bar that she kept a few empty boxes on so no one would sit on it.

_Over at Nick's apartment…_

"2 minutes left guys. Any regrets?" Nick jokingly asks the room full of everyone in his living room. He goes back to turn the TV on so they can watch the ball drop.

"My only regret is that my husband didn't make it before midnight" Rachel says putting her head on Nick's shoulder with a sad frown.

As they all watch the TV, the ball starts to drop at the 60 second mark.

_Back at the bar…_

"Here Finn" Stephanie says as she hands him a shot. "We'll do a shot once the ball drops" she says smiling. "45 seconds!" she says as she has her shot in hand ready to toast Finn.

"Thanks Steph" he says giving her a nod.

_Back at Nick's…_

"This is it!" Nick yells out. They all start to count down from 10-1…as soon as they hit 1, everyone starts to hug each other. Rachel and Nick hug first, and she breaks the hug and starts to hug everyone else. When she finds herself back to Nick, he smiles at her.

"Can I give you a kiss for the new year?" he asks her.

Rachel is unsure if she should allow Nick to kiss her. _We did a lot more than kissing each day on that stage, she thinks to herself. But, at the same time, I promised Finn the first kiss of the new year! But poor Nick is all alone and is hosting this wonderful party. It's just an innocent little kiss. Finn will get a lot more than a kiss tonight, and in the new year,_ she smiles to herself.

"Sure" she says smiling. Nick leans in and gives her a chaste kiss on the mouth.

"Happy new year Rachel" he says smiling, as he begins to hug her.

_Back at the bar…_

"Happy new year Finn" Stephanie says as she clings her shot to his and they both down it. She leans over the bar and grabs his tie and gives him a quick kiss on the mouth. It was ironically the same type of kiss Nick gave Rachel.

"Happy new year" Finn says as he smiles.

He doesn't feel guilty about Stephanie kissing him because Rachel gets to kiss pretty boy every night on stage…_and apparently, they get to go shopping for our bedroom sheets too, _he thinks. _It was an innocent little kiss,_ he thinks to himself as he shrugs his shoulders. _Man, the last time I kissed a girl other than Rachel…it was her college roommate junior year, and I drank so much rum and cokes that I climbed into her bed instead of Rachels. Man, Rachel was so mad at me…not for kissing her roommate, but because I was so drunk, _he thinks.

He looks around at the bar and notices everyone else senselessly making out with others. He laughs because it's typical new years behavior…and he secretely wishes Rachel was with him because he loves being with her. _I so wish I can smell her right now,_ he thinks.

_Back at Nick's…_

Rachel is looking all over for her phone but she can't find it. "Has anyone seen my phone?" she asked everyone within her vicinity. No one responded, while Nick just kept re-pouring her drink.

"Have some more champagne, I bought tons of it" Nick says as he pours it into her glass.

"Thanks Nick. This is all too familiar from just a week ago" she says as she laughs.

"Ehhh it's the holidays. We all go back to business starting in a couple of days. Enjoy the gluttony while we can" he says smiling while putting his hand on her waist.

_Back at the bar…_

"Ok Steph, this has to be the last shot. I told my wife I would go meet her up at the party tonight" he said already buzzed.

"Ok Finn…but be careful, you look a bit drunk already. You started late, and have had quite a bit in a little amount of time. Not sure it's safe for you to travel in your condition, due to anyone mugging you or something you know?" she tries to reason with him.

"I know" he says. "I haven't even changed my clothes yet" he said squinting his eyes. He's already tired and drunk.

"Finn…why don't you tell Rachel to come here?" she says.

"Good idea…I'll text her" he says, as he grabs his phone to text her. ::Racx! cna u colme toi bbar, vul u::

_Back at Nick's…_

Rachel is still looking for her phone because she wants to text Finn to ask where he's at. It's already half passed 1, and Rachel is starting to worry.

"Come on Rachel…we're going to play some games" one of her cast mates grabs her arm to go to the living room.

Rachel gets pushed in the living room with everyone else to play charades. Since they're all actors, they love these types of games. Usually, when she used to hang out with Finn and his friends, they would always play drinking, card games or Flippy cup.

_Back at the bar…_

"Ok, I think I might go back to my place and grab something to eat. I'm not going to keep up with this drinking without eating something" Finn said to Stephanie.

"Oh….I can put in a pizza Finn…I'm manager of the bar, I have control over the kitchen. Unless you want to go and grab a beef sandwich or something?" she says to him.

"No no…a pizza will work" he says smiling. "Thanks" he takes another sip of his beer and looks at his phone, but nothing. _Come on Rachel…i know you are probably hanging out with all your theatre friends. Fuck it then…you are having fun with them…I can have fun on my own too! I was head of my fraternity in college….i have tons of my own friends,_ he thinks to himself. Finn starts to feel insecure of Rachel's recent success and lack of needing him. He's so used to her needing him all the time, because he was always the popular one with all the friends…this time, he has to adjust to her having her own friends and life outside of Finn.

_Back at Nicks…_

Everyone is still up listening to music and playing charades having a great time. Rachel leaves the living room to go look for her purse, because she desperately wants to know what happened to Finn.

"Ahhhh FiNALLY!" she yells out loud to herself. Rachel finally found her phone, which has accidently fallen in someone else's purse. She reads Finn's text and realizes he was drunk when he sent it. She quietly laughs and decides to call him, because Rachel hates text messages.

She gets his voicemail and leaves a message…"Finn! I'm so sorry, I lost my phone, happy new year! I couldn't really read your text ,but I want to make sure you're ok. Are you still coming? Should I come home? Let me know baby!" she hangs up the phone.

Rachel waits a bit, and Finn sends her a text message back. ::Raxh, stzy at Nicks, I have mty own friends here::

Rachel was able to decipher what his text meant and it stung a bit. She knows he's drunk, and she also knows his favorite manager, Stephanie, is probably waiting on him. _Is he getting something from her that I can't give him or something? _She asks herself. Rachel used to have a tendency to be jealous, but being with Finn for so long, it almost became like a brother/sister relationship…plus the sexual attraction, and minus the creepy southern brother and sister marrying each other vibe. She has just felt so comfortable with Finn and neither of them are really jealous anymore. But, she can't help but feel a bit empty that he didn't come tonight. And now, he said he's having fun across town without her.

_Back at the bar…_

"Another shot Stephanie!" he yells at her pointing to an empty shot glass.

"Finn, are you going to that party? I can't if you're going somewhere else" she said putting a towel over her shoulder.

"No…I'm where I want to be, then you can walk me home again! Come on" he says pointing to his empty glass.

"Ok Finn…but when you're praying to the porcelain Gods tomorrow, please don't be mad at me" she says laughing.

_Back at Nicks…_

"Ok, who's staying tonight? I got plenty of room!" he yells out to everyone getting ready to wind down. It's not 3:00am, and everyone is starting to fall asleep or have left.

"I better go Nick" Rachel barely says out while lying on his couch.

"Don't be ridiculous Rachel. Stay here, I'm sure Finn would want you to. I don't want you out at this hour, I don't care if you are not driving. I don't trust people out there on a night like this" he says as he puts his hand on her hair.

Rachel can barely hear him because she's starting to fall asleep. He picks her up from the couch and takes her to his bed in his bedroom. She is out like a light and doesn't even realize she's being moved. He comes back out and gives a few others some blankets and pillows to sleep over, and a few cast mates do. He goes back to his bedroom and puts some shorts and a t-shirt on to go to bed. He grabs a shirt of his so Rachel can wear, so she's not sleeping in her dress.

"Nick" she says groggily, "What time is it, and what are you doing?" she asks.

"I'm putting a t-shirt on you. You can't sleep in this dress" he says as he helps her out of her dress and throws the oversized t-shirt on her body. She curls up and goes to bed in Nick's bed…and Nick also gets under the covers. They both fall asleep.

_Back at the bar…_

"Come on Finn…time to take you home" Stephanie says.

"No, I'm ok" he says as he stumbles off the stool.

"Ok cowboy…I think I should walk you home again. I know where you live now anyway, and I want to make sure you get home safe. Your wife would probably like that" she says putting his arm around her shoulder as he guides her out.

Stephanie walks Finn home and gets him upstairs. "Thanks Steph…you're a cool friend" he says with his half smile.

"Anytime Finn" she says as she kisses his cheek and walks out the door.

Finn finds his way to the bedroom and throws his clothes off as he starts to walk towards the bed. He slips under the covers and realizes Rachel isn't there. He stretches his arm out and pretends he feels her. He figures she'll be coming through the door at any minute, because no matter how angry they are at each other…they always go to bed together. _Not that we're mad at each other, I think I just needed my own friends and fake lover, _Finn starts to think as he dozes off. _But, I miss Rachel._


	14. Attorney Chad

_**Ok, thank you so much again for all the reviews! Sorry this took awhile since the NYE chapter. I hope you like it….**_

As the morning glare starts to reach Rachel's eyes…she slowly starts to wake up, and wonder if Finn will get up to shut the room darkeners.

"Mmmmm" Rachel growls out as she inches closer to him. She is completely discombobulated, and it takes her a few minutes to realize that the guy she has her arm and leg wrapped around is a bit smaller in frame than she's used to. _What the…_she thinks to herself. _Wait…where am I? _She slowly lifts her head to realize that she's got half her body wrapped around the wrong guy. _Nick!...crap! _

Rachel just stares at Nick for a few seconds and tries to rewind the events of last night in her mind, to make sure she didn't do anything stupid; _or he didn't take advantage of me,_ she thinks. She shakes her head for a second and realizes that nothing happened, and she was dumb to think that anything would have happened. She turns over and gets out of bed quickly, while searching for her clothes. She finds her dress on the floor, and grabs it as she starts to quickly, but quietly sneak out of Nick's bedroom.

"Hey, where are you going?" she hears a voice coming from the bed as she's about to walk out the door. She slowly turns around to look at the bed, and Nick has awoken and is staring Rachel down.

"I'm uhhh….getting out of here. I shouldn't have slept here" she says quietly.

"Rachel, you were drinking, and it was very late and cold outside. There was no way I was going to let you go home alone" Nick firmly said.

"No…I mean, I shouldn't have slept in your bed….with you" she says back. "I was too tired to fight it last night, but Nick…I'm a married woman. I can't do these irresponsible acts, and not have to face the consequences. I'm sure Finn wouldn't be happy if he found out" she said, starting to think about her husband and how much she'll be in the dog house for this.

"Well…it was just sleep Rachel. And we're JUST friends…nothing happened" he said. "I didn't want you to sleep on the couch, and my bed is plenty big" he said trying to convince her.

"I know, but I can't keep thinking if the shoe was on the other foot, how I would feel. That's fine that you brought me to your bed, but you shouldn't have slept in it with me" she said.

"I get you Rachel. I wasn't thinking last night…I was drinking too, and I was tired. I guess I sometimes mix our stage life with our real life. I apologize" he said looking sadly at her. He really is not sorry, but he knows it's just easier to apologize then to try and convince her otherwise.

"It's ok" she takes a deep breath and exhales. "I'm going to change and get out of here, and see where the hell my husband is." she said as she walked out the door. She didn't want Nick to catch on that she's really pissed at Finn for texting her what he said last night. _Where does he come off staying at that bar and leaving me alone on New Years Eve? I sometimes can just KILL him, _she thinks to herself as she starts to change. It sometimes always has to turn into this weird competition with him.

When she exits the bathroom door, a few of her cast mates are lying around in the living room. "Hey Rachel, did you have a good night with Nick?" one of them says as they wink. All 3 of them start to laugh, as they try to give her a hard time with sleeping with Nick.

"Ohhh no" Rachel nervously starts to laugh. "NOTHING. Happened" Rachel tries to emphasize to her cast mates.

"Yeah ok…that's why your hubby never showed up last night, and you conveniently slept in Nick's bed" one of them says.

"Guys…wait. I fell asleep on the couch, and Nick carried me to his bed. I can barely form a sentence I was so tired" she throws her arm up at them to try and prove her point more.

"Rachel it's fine. You don't have to explain. We saw Finn's behavior the last 2 times at the bar when we were all out…and the last time when he got arrested was just embarrassing for the poor guy. We figured it would only be a matter of time" they say.

"A matter of time for what?" she looks at them puzzled.

"Before you and Nick start to grind up and down OFF stage" one of them says lifting their eyebrow.

"GUYS…you have to stop this. There is nothing going on here" she said starting to get mad at their implications. She starts to huff away and grab her coat and shoes. As she's putting her shoes on, one of the cast mates recognizes that she didn't find this funny, and comes up to her and puts their hand on her shoulder.

"Rachel" the cast mate says, "I'll speak for the rest of the group here….we're sorry. It's just that we saw you two kissing last night…we just assumed. You are always so touchy feely with each other, we didn't…"

"Oh no" she said interrupting. "I see now" she said vaguely. Rachel didn't quite think of what she was doing to Finn until this point. She didn't think the chaste kiss on the mouth with Nick was a big deal…but when mixed with everything since the beginning, things started to click with her. _The hands on her lap, the sharing of bottles of champagne, shopping together, working out together, lunches together, spending Christmas Eve together, secret texting to Nick about Finn, and now…ending the Old Year, and beginning the New Year together. When you mix all this together, I guess it explains Finn's behavior. I have to go home and make this right,_ she thinks to herself. _Although, he did kill Patti, and THAT was not my fault._ She ignores everyone in the room and just walks out the door in a daze and starts to head home.

When Rachel walks through the front door of their apartment, it's already 12:30pm. She's hoping when she gets home, Finn will be there. _Who knows, he could have left me last night for Stephanie…which he sorta did. _She throws her shoes off and coat, and sees a post-it note on Chad's fishbowl. ::Mommy - Daddy loves you very much and he's sorry for not meeting you last night. Be nice to him. – Chad:: _Ok, maybe Finn does need some friends,_ Rachel laughs to herself from the note. She slowly starts to forget she's mad at Finn for ditching her last night as she starts to walk in their bedroom. She smiles as soon as she sees him lying there, _alone thank God. What a terrible New Years Eve_, she thinks. As she starts to walk closer to the bed, she sees the brand new sheets ruffle and Finn's head turns to look at Rachel.

"Is this the 'something special' you wore last night for me?" he says with a guilty look. Rachel nods and smiles, and walks over to Finn's side of the bed and sits down on the edge. He takes his hand to put it around her waist as he is so glad she finally came home.

"I was really mad that you didn't come home last night, but then I realized I ditched you and told you I was going to stay at the party with my own friends. So I suppose it's my fault" he said putting his head down and kissing her arm lightly.

"Well…I was going to be really mad at you for ditching me, but then I realized that maybe I gave you a reason to" she said as she bent down to kiss his forehead.

"How are we going to do this?" Finn asked Rachel.

"Do what…exactly?" she asked worried about what he meant.

"Our new life as YOU, being a star, and ME, having to deal with it" he said shifting his eyes out of guilt.

"So you're admitting that you haven't dealt with it that great?" she said wanting to smile because he may have finally admitted his fault.

"Yes" he sighs. "I, Finn Hudson, have not dealt with my wife's newfound fame" he said smiling back in defeat.

"Well…I, Rachel Hudson, have given my husband…." She takes a gulp, "…a reason to doubt my love for him" she said putting her head down in defeat as well.

"I always knew you loved me through this…I just needed to know you would chose me over any of this" he said looking up at her.

"No way", she said, "You mean over fame?" she asked jokingly dumbfounded. "I would sell my soul to the devil to be famous" he said biting her bottom lip and smirking.

"That's what I'm afraid of" he says back as he pulls her down to the bed and she falls on top of him.

"Ow" she playfully screams out as he starts to kiss her. She takes her hands and puts them around her neck and kisses him back passionately. "Finn" she says breaking the kiss.

"I know…Chicago" he says rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, but some new developments have come up, and I swear to God Finn, I just heard about them yesterday…"

"I know babe" he cuts her off. "The entertainment guy from the news already told me that they're moving the musical up, so you guys can possibly perform at the Tonys" he said back.

"Yeah, that's what I was going to say" she said waiting for Finn's response to this news.

"It's ok" he says exhaling into her arm. "I drank away my anger over it last night, hence me being pissy to you via text" he said looking up at her. "Then, I realized that I love you so much. I hated not being with you last night, that I would rather be married to you and have sex once a year, then to never be able to touch you again for the rest of my life" he said with his half smile.

"Great" she said with a big grin. "So, I guess we can void that 3 month pass now" she said trying to get off of Finn. Finn grabs her back down on top of him and wouldn't let her out of his embrace. "Finn!" she screams out.

"Oh no" he laughs. "I'm simply going to put a HOLD on the pass while you're gone, and actually I had my lawyer look at it last night" he said smiling

"Oh?" she asked him wondering what he's up to.

"Yeah" he said. "My lawyer has put a year extension on it actually. You see, he read through the fine print, and if the giver of the pass breaks any clause in the document; the barer is allowed for a 365 day extension" he said kissing her arm and up to her neck.

"Who's this lawyer?" she starts laughing. "I may have to get him to represent me next time."

"Oh you can't afford him" he said kissing her.

"I think I can, I make more money than you do now" she said sticking her tongue out and biting down.

"Yeah, but he's a convicted felon…you probably can't handle him. You see, he's a murderer" he says lifting his eyebrows.

"Chad?" she says laughing. "Chad is your lawyer?" she asked.

Finn just starts laughing that she guessed it, "How did you know?"

"Well, he's a pretty prolific fish, he already represented you this morning for your poor decision making last night" she said kissing him back with more force.

Finn doesn't even respond, because he's too busy kissing Rachel and trying to undue her dress. She can feel him smiling underneath their kiss and it feels so good to her. Not the kiss particularly, but the smile underneath the kiss. They continue to kiss passionately and lose themselves in each other.

5 hours later, after they had sex 3 times and took naps…they both decided to get out of bed. Rachel gets up first and starts to pick Finn's clothes up off the floor from last night. Finn just sits up and watches her start to tidy up the bedroom. He finally gets up and goes straight into the shower. As Rachel starts to pick up his clothes, a note falls from his pants pocket. She picks up the note and reads it. ::Finn, thanks for the shots, call me – Amy::

Rachel's eyes widen as an overwhelming feeling starts to fill her body. "Amy?" she says out loud. She huffs out of their bedroom and goes into the living room. She starts to pace the floor back and forth in anger. _Damnit Finn, you're pissed at me for being an actress, and you're trying to get back at me by finding some whore at a bar for a night. So, let me get this straight? Every time I have a part in musical, play or movie, you're going to act like an adolescent, whiney little boy? _She starts to argue with herself.

As she keeps pacing, Finn walks out with a fresh t-shirt and boxers on. "Hey babe" he says as he can tell something must be wrong. Rachel is standing by the counter in the kitchen looking at Finn. She takes a deep breath and starts to walk passed him and toward their bathroom so she can take a shower.

"Your lawyer has a note for you" she says as she walks by him.

Finn just looks puzzled and watches her walk through the hallway and into their bedroom. He then turns around and looks towards Chad, his _lawyer._ He sees a note on Chad's fishbowl. He picks it up and reads it. It's the note from some girl named Amy thanking him for the shots. _ Fuck_, he thinks.

"Rachel!" he screams out walking towards the bedroom. She slams the door in his face and he just opens it and keeps going. "Come on Rachel, it's an innocent little note" he says as she starts to go in the bathroom to take a shower.

"Finn" she says as she opens the bathroom door to peak her head out, "I know what you are doing, and I'm not really mad, trust me. I just need a second" she says as she slams the door hard. "Although you might have pissed off your girlfriend Stephanie by cheating on her" she mumbles to herself.

Finn barges in the bathroom door to keep talking. "How come you ALWAYS know why I'm mad? Can't you ever be pissed at me for something that you DON'T know why I'm pissed in the first place?" he yells throwing his arms around. "I'm sick of you reading my mind" he says.

"What?" she asks as she starts to take her clothes off in the bathroom. "Why do you get mad that I always know what you're thinking about? I-I-I just know because I listen to you, and I love you…and I want to know how to heal you when you're hurt" she says as she starts to turn the water on.

"Bull….SHIT Rachel" he says back. "Stop acting like you are trying to save me. And you know what babe?" he says as she turns around to look at him. "People loved me at that bar. They loved me like they did in high school and college. They wanted me to talk to them, and want me to be around them…and yeah…maybe a few girls thought I was cute…"

"Of course they did Finn" she cuts him off. "Because you are HANDSOME. In fact, you are SEXY…you are what most girls think of as HOT. And I have to deal with being married to a really good looking male, who just happens to be on TV" she says as she strips naked and gets in the shower. "How do you think THAT makes me feel?" she says. "You've been nervous about me and Nick this whole time, and to be honest…Nick doesn't find me attractive. He likes my talent. Everyone likes my talent, no one is coming up to me because they think I'm HOT" she says as she starts to wash her hair.

Finn just stands there for a second because it's been a long time since Rachel has called him handsome or even hot. _She thinks I'm hot?_ He smiles inside. He's known her so long, and she puts up this giant wall when it comes to his looks, and other girls finding him attractive. She usually keeps it all inside and almost forgets herself that she thinks he's good looking, because she's always trying to disregard the looks girls give him when they're out together.

Finn walks over to the glass door and throws his head down as he puts his hand on the glass. Rachel doesn't pay attention because she's washing her hair. "Babe" Finn says quietly as he keeps his head down. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have talked to anyone at that bar last night. It didn't' mean anything though" he says as she looks up at her.

She rinses her hair and can hear everything he says. "It's ok, I get it. This was something that I've learned to deal with since I've known you. You've always been good looking Finn. I have always had to deal with girls looking at you, and I'm ok with it now" she says as she looks at him through the glass door. He opens the glass door and walks in the shower with his boxers and shirt on.

"Finn!" she screams out at him walking in the shower with clothes on. "What are you doing?" she asks.

"I'm being erroneous" he said.

"Spontaneous", Rachel corrects him. He takes his hands and places them on her waist gently and kisses her on the mouth.

"I'm nervous about you too babe" he says kissing her again. "You're extremely beautiful and I KNOW guys find you hot. Of course I freaked out when you and Nick were getting along, because I know what's on a guy's mind. I AM one" he says as he gently kisses her shoulder and moves his hands around her body. "I'm sure he likes you more than JUST your talent."

"Finn" she says out of breath. "Nick had me sleep in his bed with him last night…BUT-b-b-but NOTHING happened, we just slept" she said looking up at him with her big brown eyes. "I fell asleep on the couch, but he carried me to his bed…I was way out of it to even think where I was to be honest. I promise you babe, it was so late, but I woke up and hurried home to see you" she said waiting for a response.

Finn doesn't say anything. He just stares at her for a minute trying to articulate something without him ending up back in jail due to running Nick over with his car.

"Ok Rachel, first of all, thanks for ruining this moment" he says as he's still clasped on to her and staring down at her face. The water is just running down both of them, as Finn's shirt and boxers are soaked, but he doesn't care because he is so numb thinking about Rachel and Nick sharing a bed together. "Secondly, you have to end this with Nick" he said very sternly.

"End it? What's to end?" she asked not knowing what he's talking about. _He's making it sound like I'm in a relationship with Nick,_ she thinks to herself.

"I can't do this anymore. I trust you Rachel…I told you that at the beginning when you told me about this musical. But, I do not trust HIM, and he shouldn't be taking you to his bed, when he KNOWS you are a married woman. End. It." He said staring her down. "It's me or this musical" he said as he breaks from her and walks out of the shower grabbing a towel to dry off.

Rachel watches him walk out of the bathroom, and she gets out of the shower herself to dry off to try and calm Finn down. She walks in the bedroom wearing a towel, while Finn is putting on some dry boxers and t-shirt.

"Finn, I can't choose between you and the musical!" she says pretty vocally. "You can't have me make this choice. I can be nominated…our entire musical can be nominated. But more importantly, I can be nominated" she says as she emphasizes on the "I".

"Thinking about yourself again huh Rach?" he asks as he just stands straight to look at her.

"No…I'm thinking of US. If I'm successful from this, then I am able to have more choices in this industry, and I am able to END. IT., as you say, whenever I want" she says standing across from him on the opposite side of the bed.

"You already proved to yourself that you can get a lead role in a Broadway musical, so there's no need to feel that you can't do it again. Please Rachel…for me. I can't have you go to Chicago doing this musical with Nick. I want you to stay here and look for another role" he says very stoic. "It's me or him" he says as he plops his body down on the bed and stares at the ceiling.

Rachel can't believe he just gave her an ultimatum. He gave her a "Sophie's Choice", where she has to choose between two things she loves more than anything. She just stares at him and starts to think about everything he's saying. _I am so close to my Tony, and performing on stage in front of the World…everything that I have always wanted, and he's making me choose? What an asshole. That's like if I asked him to choose sports over me. There shouldn't have to be a choice. _Rachel thinks about this and walks out the bedroom door to go find her phone.

Finn just lies there on their bed contemplating what he just said to Rachel. _I can't believe I just gave her a choice? I would so divorce me if I were her. That's like her asking me to choose between her and sports,_ he thinks to himself. _Maybe that was a little too drastic? Maybe we can find another compromise?_

Rachel grabs her phone off the counter in the kitchen. _I'm going to call one of the producers and quit,_ she thinks. _I'm Rachel Berry, and I can find an even better part, _she tries to talk herself into making the right decision._ I can't perform and win a Tony without Finn being by my side,_ she starts to cry as she dials.

"Rachel!" Finn yells out as runs out of their room. "I'm sorry! I shouldn't have said that, that's not fair to you" he says as he sees her crying and dialing the phone. "What are you doing? Are you calling a divorce lawyer?" he asks her as he walks over to her and puts his hands on her arms.

"No you idiot" she says taking her back hand and wiping a tear going down her cheek. "I'm quitting" she said as she starts to listen to the producer's voicemail.

"No!" he yells out grabbing her phone and hanging up. Rachel just stares at him waiting to say more.

"I-I-I can't believe you were going to quit" he said in astonishment. "You were actually going to give up your dreams for me?" he asked her still holding on to both her arms.

Rachel just nods her head and leans her head on his chest. Finn takes his hands and rubs her back to calm her down, as he can feel her shaking. "I'm so sorry, I will never do that to you again" he said holding her tight.

"I'm the one that's sorry Finn. I love you SO much, I would give up my voice for you" she said almost crying.

Finn breaks their contact for a second so he can look at her. "Come on, you wouldn't give up your voice" he said smiling and tilting his head.

"I know I just said that because it's impossible to do" she said very serious as she starts to whimper, and move her head back down to his chest. Finn let's out a small laugh because he knows she's dead serious, but he also knows she would do almost anything for him.

They both just stand there in the kitchen and hold each other. Finn and Rachel have definitely gone through some rough patches, but they came out even stronger than before.

Well, accept for Patti.

**END OF CHAPTER 14**

Next chapter will be the LAST CHAPTER of this story. Thanks to those for sticking with it from the beginning to the end. I already have the last chapter laid out, but just have to do some fill ins, so hopefully it will be done before the end of this weekend. If anyone is wondering…in the last chapter, we will jump ahead a few months. That's all I'm saying, you'll have to read to find out what happens. Also, I think I will continue a "part 2" of this couple. We still have a few more weeks until the super bowl, so I need something to keep me busy that's glee related!


	15. A Seat Filler Calmed Me Down

_**THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THOSE WHO HAVE LOVED, LIKED, OR EVEN KINDA READ THE STORY! Your reviews, and even some of the constructive criticisms were helpful and always welcome. Let me know what you think, so I know if ya'll liked this story; therefore I can take your feedback into the next story. Do we want Nick in the future? Chad? Lol…I don't know…I was thinking her being pregnant, but is that overdone? Should I just go into it with their kids grown up already? Or do you just want to be surprised? Let me know… **_

_Mid March…_

"Hello?" Finn asks as he answers the phone. He's sitting at home in sweats and a t-shirt watching a basketball game with Chad.

"It's your wife" Rachel says as she's sitting on a couch of her sublet apartment with a bowl of popcorn. The producers were going to put everyone up in hotels, but they also had the option to rent a temporary apartment since they'd be staying for 3 months.

"I know…I didn't look at my phone when I answered sorry" he said as he turned the volume down on the TV. "How are you doing today beautiful?" he asked her smiling.

"You wouldn't be calling me that if you took a look at me today. I haven't showered, brushed my teeth, or even brushed my hair yet today. I've been exhausted lately, I look horrid" she said sounding tired.

"Ahhh the joys of marriage; nothing is left to the imagination is it?" he asks her joking.

"Sorry babe" she laughs. "I'm actually wearing a very see through, lacy bra with crotch-less panties, and scented oil, rubbed all over my body" she says in a mocking sensual voice.

"That's much better" he says grinning big. "I'm in old, dirty sweats and a t-shirt" he starts to laugh.

"Good, I don't want you looking good in New York all by yourself" she said, moving on to why she called. "Listen…I want to know if you'll be coming to see me this weekend?" she asked him. Rachel has been in Chicago for 2 months, and they have yet to see each other. Finn got promoted to weeknights, along with sending him on location to some basketball games and spring training for the Mets and the Yankees. It actually was good timing, since Rachel would be in Chicago, and Finn would have less time to obsess over her role as the _teenage whore, _as he likes to refer to her character as.

"Of course babe, you asked me like 12 times last weekend if I was getting this weekend off" he said with annoyance.

"…and?" she asked wanting him to confirm.

"Yes. Yes I will be seeing you this weekend" he said.

"Don't sound too excited" she said sarcastically.

"You're right…I'm sorry. I am very excited to see you" he said. "But I think you know WHY I'm not OVERLY excited" he said referring to the no-sex thing.

"So you only see me as a sex object?" she asked him. "I thought, I don't know…going out to dinner TOGETHER, talking one on one TOGETHER, being able to cuddle TOGETHER, would be good enough…"

"You're right" he said cutting her off. "I'm sorry…you know I can't WAIT to see you. I'm more worried about Finn Jr. that's all. I'm just looking out for my little guy" he said.

"Little eh?" she said giggling.

"Bad choice of words" he said shaking his head. "Anyway, yes…I will be there Friday afternoon" he said smiling. What Rachel DEOSN'T know, is that he actually got a flight for Thursday night. He wants to surprise Rachel, a la Thanksgiving Day when she surprised Finn. He loved that feeling of being completely shocked, that he wants to return the favor for her. He even went as far as contacting one of her cast mates to get a spare key for her apartment, which they made arrangements to leave it with the doorman. He was so proud of himself, because every time he has tried to surprise her with anything…it usually ends up in disaster, or a pet dying.

"Can't wait to see you babe" she said.

"Yeah, and hopefully we'll be celebrating a Tony nomination?" he says as a question.

"How did you know they were announcing them this Friday?" she asked him.

"Because you told me like 50 times in the last few days" he said rolling his eyes.

"Right." She said knowing she did remind him about 50 times, because that's how many times she has to tell him things so he remembers anything. "Ok, and don't forget, if the musical, or any of the actors get nominated, we are all going out to celebrate, and…"

"I know, I know" Finn cuts her off. "Don't start any fights, don't hit anyone, and ohhh, don't get arrested…again" he said like a little kid going over the list of things of what NOT to do at a party.

"You got it. See? You're learning…this should go smooth this time" she said smiling and hoping.

Rachel and Finn talk for another hour on the phone, as they have every day for the last two months. The week goes by pretty fast, and Finn even found time to go shopping for some new clothes to wear at Rachel's performance this weekend in Chicago. He wants to look the very best for her, because he is secretly hoping she'll find him so irresistible that she'll want sex. He even went as far as to get an argyle sweater, because Rachel loves argyle and is always begging him to try one on when they pass a mannequin wearing one at the GAP. Finn just rolls his eyes and always says that he's not going to wear anything at Gay And Proud. Rachel then gets offended and huffs off, before Finn has to find her like a lost child at the mall and apologize for being mean. That's usually how their trips to the mall go.

Finn arrives in Chicago about 9:30pm. Everything is going exactly to plan, as he is trying to get to her apartment before she gets home. Her cast mate that he has been covertly planning this operation with knows to make sure that Rachel does not go out and goes strictly back to her apartment. Finn pulled out his map to make sure he got on the right "L" to get to her apartment. He had to take the Blue Line over to the Red Line. _I wonder why I can't just take the purple line?_ He started to chuckle at his own joke. And then he patted himself on the back for remembering his primary colors.

When Finn got off the Blue Line, he had to hurry up to get downstairs to transfer over to the Red Line. He grabbed his bag and map and hurried down the stairs. He saw the Red Line was just about to close its doors, so he ran and threw his hand out to stop the door from closing. Being the macho man that he is, he was adamant about making this train so he pushed his way through, but at the same time he couldn't get his bag through the door quickly enough, and the doors closed and the train sped off.

"Noooooo!" he started to bang on the doors as the train kept moving at he saw his bag sitting there all alone next to the tracks. _Fuck, everything I brought this week is in that bag,_ he thought. As the train got to his stop, Finn got out discouraged that he lost all his belongings. When he got to Rachel's apartment, he searched his pocket only to come to the realization that he left his wallet in his suitcase as well. _Fuck ME,_ he said loudly in his head. He approached the doorman and introduced himself.

"Hi Mr. Hudson, can I see some ID please?" the doorman asked.

"Yeah I lost my wallet, I don't have any. Can you please let me in anyway sir?" he asked the doorman.

"Sorry sir, I would love to, and I know you might get mad, but I can't allow anyone up to Ms. Berry's apartment if I don't see ID. Can't be too cautious you know" he told Finn.

"Come on MAN…this is ridiculous! WHO ELSE WOULD KNOW THE PLAN OF ME SURPRISING RACHEL, AND KNOWING YOU HAD THE KEY?" he shouted very loudly outside the apartment complex.

"Sir, Ms. Berry has fans come up here all the time claiming they know her. I'm sorry, I can't let you in without a proper ID. If she's your real wife, then you can wait for her to get here" he tried to calm Finn down. But Finn, not feeling very calm after his long day of traveling, and losing his luggage, started to feel defeated all over again.

"Dude, there's some bum probably wearing my new argyle sweater and maxing out my visa right now, please, PLEASE let me in. The last thing I have control over is to surprise my wife!" he said continuing shouting at the doorman.

A couple of policemen heard Finn shouting and didn't take it very lightly. They walked over and asked what the problem was, but Finn started to lose his patience. He had lost his luggage, and all he wanted to do was get in Rachel's apartment.

"Sir, please calm down" said one of the policemen. The policemen asked the doorman if everything was alright, and he said he felt threatened, so off went Finn to the police station….again. Finn, knowing the drill this time, just got in the cop car and started cursing his life at the moment. When he got to the police station, he wasn't sure if he should use his ONE call on Rachel, but he figured he had no choice. He knew he would get her voicemail, but he figured that might be a blessing in disguise.

::Hi Rachel…I have some good news and bad news. The bad news is that you have to pick me up at the police station on State Street. The good news is that it's close to your apartment…oh and I'm in Chicago, so I'm not sure if you think that's good or bad. Please come:: he said as he hung up the phone. He then closed his eyes and leaned his head back in the cell and waited for Rachel to pick him up again.

When the musical was over, Rachel listened to her voicemail and couldn't believe what she heard. She didn't know if this was a cruel, weird joke from Finn…or if this is her cruel, weird reality playing out in real time. She called the police station to make sure this really happened, and to her demise, it was certainly a reality.

"Mr. Hudson, you can come with me. You're free to go" a police officer said to Finn, unlocking the cell doors.

"My wife is here?" he asked hesitantly.

"Yeah, and she made you sound better on The Tonight Show version then what actually happened. You should be lucky. However, your daughter's wedding sounds like a blast" he said as they start walking towards the door.

When Finn emerges from the door, he spots Rachel standing there staring at him with no expression. He can't tell what's on her mind, so he just walks over to her and stops a few feet away.

"Is it your goal to get arrested in every city we go to?" she asked him as he looked sadly at her.

"Only the big ones" he said half frowning.

"Come on jailbird" she said as she turns around and starts to walk out of the police station.

"This scene sounds awfully familiar" he says following her.

"Something to be proud of baby" she asks him as they go outside to hail a cab.

Finn doesn't say anything as she's the one who takes charge to hail a cab. He has only been to Chicago once, and she's lived in the city for 2 months, so he lets her guide them to her place. When they arrive to her apartment, Finn spots the doorman.

"I told you she's my wife" Finn barks at the doorman.

"Hey man, I'm sorry, but you should be lucky that I'm protecting her. You didn't have ID, was I supposed to let any strange guy up to her apartment?" he asked him as they walk to the elevators.

Rachel doesn't say anything, and Finn starts to think that the doorman is right. Rachel is all alone in Chicago by herself, and can be easily taken advantage of. He should be lucky to have such an obedient doorman. The guy cared enough about her to not let some total stranger in. _Especially after I lost my cool with him too,_ he started to think.

"Remind me to thank him later" Finn said to Rachel referring to the doorman. They both get out of the elevator and start to walk to her apartment.

"Yeah, he's a good guy. He takes care of me" she said opening the door. She turns around before she completely opens the door and looks at him. "I am SO glad you are here tonight, despite whatever happened…but I'm sure you had a good explanation" she said turning around and walking through the door. She didn't really care what he did or why, because she's so happy to see Finn.

"I do…I mean…I did anyway. I shouldn't have lost my cool, but I had this plan to surprise you, and now there's a bum or some Chicago rat wearing my argyle sweater" he said throwing his arms up and frowning.

"What?" she starts to laugh walking over to him and hugging him.

"I went shopping for some new clothes and well…it's a long story, but I left my luggage on the "L" tracks tonight. That's why I don't have my wallet, and I didn't have my ID to show the doorman" he said hugging her tightly back.

"You bought an argyle sweater?" she smiled and looked up at him. "…for me?" she asked kissing him on the cheek.

"Yeah" Finn says nodding. "I wanted to re-create your surprise to me on Thanksgiving. I wanted to surprise you by coming a day early" he said putting his hands on her waist.

"I love you, and you did surprise me alright" she said laughing. "I'm getting used to bailing you out Hudson" she said staring up at him. "Go lay on the couch and I'll get you a beer" she said motioning to the couch.

"You don't drink beer" he said worried that Nick might be frequenting over and that's why she has the beer.

"I bought it yesterday for you baby" she said kissing him on the chest. He smiled down at her and then broke their embrace to get comfortable on the couch.

She grabbed his beer and walked over to the couch, where Finn has made himself comfortable. She slowly climbs up on him on the couch and hovered over him, placing the beer on the coffee table.

"Hi" he says quietly with a huge grin on his face, trying to relax himself of tonight's escapades. "I missed you" he said as he took his one hand and placed it on her cheek.

"I missed you too sweetheart" she said as she placed a sweet kiss on his mouth.

He grabbed both arms and squeezed her lightly as he turned the kiss into a very deep, lingering one. Rachel's body loosened as she was spread out on Finn's body, and she began to move her right leg up so she can kneel over him to get a better grip on their kiss. Finn moved his one hand to her hair and started to soak in the feel of her, as it's been two very long months since they have felt each other. Rachel's hands starting to wander over to Finn's chest as she can feel his muscles while gripping on to his shirt tight. Finn went with her movements and began to take his right hand and place it up her shirt from behind trying to unclasp her bra. His tongue curling around hers, he pushed her back down where her body is flattened on his. She moved her hands around his neck and broke the kiss, breathing heavily shifting her focus on his neck. Finn just closed his eyes and let Rachel do all the work at this point. He knows they can't have sex, so he's just going to enjoy what he can get. After a few minutes, Rachel shifts her body upwards and smiles at him.

"Want to go to bed?" she asked him. Finn looked at her suspiciously because he didn't know what "bed" meant exactly. He just nodded as she got up and walked over to the front door to make sure it's locked. Finn watched her every movement as he followed her to the bedroom as she opened a dresser to grab a pair of pajamas.

"Ahhh yes, you literally meant bed" he mumbled, smiling thinking it was too good to be true. He then thought of his beer that was untouched on the coffee table.

"What did you say?" she asked him as she started to walk out the bedroom to go to the bathroom to get ready for bed.

"Nothing" he said as he stripped down to his boxers. _I'll drink tomorrow,_ he thought to himself. "Can I borrow your toothbrush?" he asked her as she was leaving the bedroom to go get ready in the bathroom. Rachel just stopped and turned around slowly.

"That's gross" she said giving him a funny look.

"Well I don't have one, and it's way too late to go out and get one. What's the difference if I use yours? We JUST made out?" he said throwing his arms up.

"It's…i-i-it's just different" she said stuttering. "I draw the line at toothbrush sharing" she said throwing her own arm up and walking towards the bathroom.

"Who says it's different?" he asked following her.

"I don't know…the WORLD. It's like an unwritten law or something" she said changing to her pajamas.

"I've seen, AND felt where your mouth goes on my body and I…"

"Finn!" she cuts him off. "I can't explain it…there are certain things we shouldn't share, and a toothbrush is one of them" she says brushing her teeth.

"Fine, then I'll use YOUR toothbrush tonight, and go out and buy you a new one in the morning" he said.

"You don't have any money" she said rinsing her mouth and letting out at a small giggle.

"I'll fly if you buy" he said smiling. "And that reminds me, I need to go to a bank tomorrow. I already cancelled my credit cards. The Chicago Police department was nice enough to let me make a few more phone calls" he said rolling his eyes.

"Ok" she said kissing him on the cheek leaving the bathroom to go to bed.

When Finn made his way to the bed, he turned the lights off and crawled in, letting out a big sigh of content. He thought he was lucky enough tonight to be with Rachel, and finally get a good night's rest, instead of sleeping alone. He was so used to sleeping with her, that he missed her small frame always breathing down his back and shoulders, as her leg was always spread across his. And just when he was about to anticipate her making her way to him, she moved all the way over to his side and curled her small frame as close as she can to Finn. _Never fails,_ he smiles to himself.

"Mmmmm, I missed you" she said in relief now that she gets to sleep with her husband again.

"I missed you too baby" he said. "I missed your body pressed against mine every night" he said referring to Rachel always finding a way to snuggle with Finn when they sleep.

"I'll go shopping with you tomorrow to go buy some new clothes ok?" she told him as she kissed his shoulder. _Fuck ME,_ he thought to himself. He forgot in that brief moment that he lost his luggage for the weekend, and he needs to go out tomorrow to buy some more clothes. He then started to relax when he felt Rachel's breath down his upper back as she let out her own content sigh.

Rachel was awoken 7 hours later from a phone call. SIX phone calls actually. She jumped up and realized she was going to find out about the Tony nominations this morning. She jumped out of bed like it was Christmas day, and she checked her phone. 4 missed calls from producers, and 2 missed calls from Nick. She couldn't wait to listen to her messages, so she just hit "send" on her phone to Nick and he answered on the first ring. She walked out of the bedroom to not wake Finn to talk to Nick. When she arrived 15 minutes later, Finn was still out like a light. She smiled and stared at him for another minute and took a minute to be grateful for everything she had in her life. She moved over to his side of the bed and sat down at the edge putting her hand over his back and putting her head closer to his face to kiss him on the cheek.

"Hi" Finn said groggily. He shifted over to give Rachel more room to sit on the bed and he smiled at her.

"I have something to tell you" she said smiling.

"You're pregnant?" he blurted out.

"Finn, think about that for a moment" she said hoping he catches on that they haven't had sex in a few months, and she would have known way sooner if she was pregnant. Finn just stares at her confused, because he's still tired and can't think straight."We got our tony nomination" she said smiling and staring him in the eyes.

"We did?" he asked popping up to meet her glance.

"The show got 4 total, and I have 1 of them…for breakthrough performance" she said laughing. "AND, we're performing at the Tonys, LIVE" she said reminding him the show is live.

"I love you so much" he said kissing her and holding on to her tight. "But it was YOU who got the nomination…I just sat around on the sidelines causing havoc mostly" he said rolling his eyes at himself.

"No baby…I told you when we first started fighting that I was trying to get US a Tony nomination, and that I did. It's OURS. Everything I do, you are a part of it" she said kissing him softly on the mouth. "I love you".

"I know" he said pulling her down on the bed and continuing their kiss. "Wait" he said pulling her back slightly. "What are you going to perform on stage?" he asked her scared it's that sex scene.

"It's a family show Finn…we'll probably do a medley of songs or something, no worries" she answered giggling, knowing he was scared.

"I wasn't worried, I was going to offer my services to help you run lines and practice the scene" he said smiling and kissing her.

When Finn landed in New York on Sunday night, he was feeling so happy. He didn't even care that he lost his luggage and new clothes. He was hoping if anything, someone homeless would find it and have a few bucks and a nice GAP sweater to wear. _He would be the most stylish bum ever, _he thought to himself. When he arrived back home at their apartment, he threw his keys on the table, along with his brand new duffle bag that he had bought in Chicago. He went next door to knock on the door of their neighbor down the hall. Finn had knocked on his door on Thursday morning holding Chad in his hand.

_3 days ago…_

"Hi, my name is Finn Hudson, I-I-I am your neighbor…I live down the hall over there" he said holding on to Chad and pointing to the other side of the building.

"Hi" the guy says looking confused and worried about what he's going to ask him.

"Well…I'm going out of town, and I have no one to feed Chad" he said with his half smile.

"Who the Fuck is Chad?" the guy says.

"This is Chad" he said holding up the fish bowl. "So uhh, can you watch him until Sunday?" he asked practically begging.

"I've never had anyone over the age of 5 wanting me to feed and babysit their gold fish" he said unenthused.

"Beta!" he said correcting him. "He's a beta fish. So uhh can you watch him? I'll give you 20 bucks" he said taking out a 20 out of his wallet.

"Sure" he said rolling his eyes and taking the fish bowl.

"Great, here's his food" he said handing him the food and the 20 bucks. "Oh, and he likes Van Halen in the morning, it helps him eat his breakfast"

"Ok" the guys said grabbing the bowl and looking at Finn weird.

"Ohhh and don't forget to move him away from the microwave if he's near that and you turn it on, it drives him CRAZY" he said shaking his head thinking about the time he did that to poor Chad.

"OK, I GOT it" the guy said trying to close the door.

"Oh and last thing…he hates the show Animal Hoarders, I think it bugs him that there are pets not being taken care of" he said sighing.

"Dude, it's a fucking fish" he said slamming the door.

Finn just frowned and turned around to walk back to the apartment.

_Back to tonight…_

Finn gets Chad from the neighbor and brings him back to their apartment. He shuts the door behind him with his foot and brings him over to his table. "Chad. Mommy and Daddy are going to be very famous one day. Well, Mommy is…but we get to be a part of her success" he said smiling. Finn finished unpacking his new clothes and gets ready for bed. He only has one more month till Rachel gets home, and then 3 more months till they both get to go to the Tony Awards. He lays in bed that night so proud of his wife.

_3 months later, June… _

"Finn darling…have you seen my dark nail polish?" she said yelling from their bedroom. Finn is in the living room already dressed in his tux drinking a beer.

"Babe, I don't wear nail polish, I don't know where you keep all that shit" he said leaning under the door frame with his beer in his hand.

Rachel is knocking everything over on her dresser looking for it. Finn walks over to her and stands behind her and kisses the back of her neck.

"Finn please not now" she squirms away.

"I'm not looking for anything" he said smiling at her. "I'm just trying to calm you down" he said putting his hand on her arm.

"I know…I'm sorry. I'm just really nervous" she said giving him a quick hug.

"You're going to be great…you've performed on stage 8 times a week for 3 months, twice, in two different cities. You are a natural at this. The stage is where you are most comfortable" he said looking down at her.

"I know, you're right…and I'm impressed that you knew my schedule" she said smiling, and then kissing him on the cheek.

"Finish up getting ready champ, we got to leave in 10" he said slapping her butt and walking out of their room. Rachel just smiled and for that second was very calm.

_During the Tony Awards…_

"I have to go get ready baby" Rachel said kissing his cheek and getting up out of her seat to go get ready for their performance on stage.

"Break a leg" he said smiling at her, and she just turned around and smiled back as she began to walk up the aisle.

It was awhile before she actually took the stage, and Finn was getting antsy and nervous for her. When they finally announced their musical, Finn never clapped so hard. As soon as the curtain went up, Rachel started to sing right away. Finn has never cried before in front of anyone, but he started to shed a tear when she hit the first note. He's not sure what hit him so hard, but it wasn't the past 9 months, it was actually the past 9 years. He cried because he couldn't believe it was the same girl that he fell in love with in high school. He can't believe that he can actually say that he got to sing, many times, with that beautiful actress on stage right now. He felt humbled to be able to have known her since high school, and be her friend, and her husband, and her lover. He was the only one who got to be everything to her, and he just started to cry.

He put his head down because he was worried the cameras would find him and see him crying, and he grabbed on to the seat filler's leg, who was sitting next to Finn. The seat filler just looked at him scared, and worried, and tried to smile not knowing how to calm him down. He just put his hand on Finn's and told him it was going to be ok. Finn just looked up at the seat filler and nodded his head and wiped his tears in his eyes. He took a few deep breaths and brought it back together. _Ok, calm down Finn,_ he said to himself.

20 minutes later, Rachel had returned to her seat smiling. "Did you like it?" she asked him putting her hand on his thigh.

"Yeah it was perfect, you were perfect" he said smiling and kissing her on the cheek.

"My category is up next Finn" she told him. They had already lost the first 2 categories, and Rachel's is next.

When they started to read the nominees for Rachel's category, the audience gave Rachel a very loud applause and she was shocked and grateful for their response. She grabbed on to Finn's thigh tighter, as he put his hand on top of hers. They called the winner…

…and she lost. Rachel closed her eyes for a brief second, but then started to smile and clap. It's something she's been practicing since she was 3 years old. She has practiced losing more than winning because a bad reaction can ruin a person's career.

"I love you" Finn whispered in her ear. Rachel didn't react because the winner is still giving her speech, and Rachel knows that the camera can pan on her any minute, and she didn't want to be caught whispering in her husband's ear. She was afraid it would look like she's complaining, and she is too sharp to look bad on live television.

When they get to a commercial break, she whispered back in Finn's ear. "I love you more" she said kissing him.

Later that night at a post-party they attended, Finn was drinking scotch. But this time, Finn was not angry or jealous, he was more sad for Rachel not winning. "Hi love" Rachel said coming up from behind him and hugging him.

"Hi" Finn said turning around and looking at her. She can tell he's a bit sad she didn't win. "How come you are taking this way better than I am?" he asked her taking a sip of his scotch.

"Because it's simple Finn….it's only the beginning" she said kissing him on the cheek. "It's actually better I lost, because I left the people with wanting more. They'll want me to find new projects, or strive to be better in my current one" she said smiling at him.

They did re-open "Spring Awakening" on Broadway a month ago, and Rachel has been busy reviving her role. And yes, Rachel decided to stay away from sex until the Tony's, because she didn't want to jinx her performance. It's been a very long year for Finn to say the least, but they have found peace since New Years Eve, and things have been much more calm with the whole Nick situation. Rachel has found a way to juggle the two men in her life very well, that she almost wishes she can win a Tony for her real life performance.

They break their contact when they hear a spoon hitting against a glass. "Come on over here everyone, I have an announcement to make" one of the producers of "Spring Awakening" yells out. Finn and Rachel walk over to the table where the entire cast is. They didn't win any of the awards they were nominated for, but they were more than happy for all the exposure. The irony is, that the only one who seemed to be sad was Finn.

"So it was a great night even though we didn't win" he said, as everyone started to let out a jovial boo. "But…it's going to be even a greater two years…because we have been granted two MORE years of our run on Broadway" he says with delight. Everyone starts to cheer and hug each other, while Finn starts to choke on his drink. _Two years? Two years? _He thinks to himself as Rachel keeps hitting his back

"Finn? Finn..are you ok?" she asks him rubbing his back.

"Yeah" Finn slows down his coughing. "I think I heard the wrong thing" he said referring to the two years.

"Finn….Finn?" she asks still patting his back. She starts to laugh knowing why he started chocking. "It's ok honey" she said still laughing. Finn doesn't even say anything, because he's trying to catch his breath from his choking.

"Two years" he said staring off into space.

"Baby…it's time I grow up as an actor ok?" she said smiling. "Our no sex policy is being thrown out the window tonight….for good" she said whispering in his ear.

"Really?" Finn suddenly pepped up. Rachel just nodded and kissed him very passionately in front of everyone.

"Whoooo!" everyone at the table yelled out when she saw Rachel kiss Finn, as they started to cling their utensils on their glasses.

Rachel breaks the kiss and just starts to laugh. "It's not our wedding day" she said to everyone referring to them clinging their glasses.

"Yeah but you guys look like you're going to make a baby" Nick yells out laughing.

Rachel just turns to Finn and smiles. "I think in two years we'll start that" she said kissing him. "What do you think?"

"Sounds like a plan. We have to talk to Chad about it first, make sure that he's ok with adding another to our family of course" he said with his half smile. Rachel just laughs and grabs on to his hand guiding him to the table to sit down right next to her.

When they get back to their apartment, it's already 2:45am. It has been a very long day and night, and they are both exhausted. Rachel throws her coat on the chair in the kitchen and takes her shoes off. "I'm going to get ready for bed" she says blowing him an air kiss and heading to their bedroom.

"Good night" he said taking off of his shoes. He shifted on the chair and her coat fell on the floor. He picked up the coat and a note fell out of her pocket. Finn picked up the note and unfolded it. _This looks like Rachel's acceptance speech?_ He thought to himself. He peaks down the hall to make sure that she's not coming back and begins to read the note….He sees she has a checklist of names, and then at the end he sees his name with a few words written after…

::and to the one person who without his support and guidance, I wouldn't be up here right now…my husband. You see, I had this dream before I met him, ever since I was a little girl actually…and I thought that if you weren't part of my dream, then I wouldn't need you in my life. What I realized from him, was that he IS my dream, and that this award here is just part of my life with him. Finn, I love you and I would NEVER have won this or would be here today without you::

Finn just stares at the note and can't even smile because he feels like he's going to cry…again. _Come on Finn, one cry a night is good enough_, he thinks to himself. The thing that makes it so emotional for him, is because he feels the same way about Rachel. He feels that it's because of her, that he has become successful. _Literally, because she helped me do better in college, and helped me with my resume, and helped me practice going on interviews. Of course, she didn't like it so much when I tried to turn our mock interviews into a slutty, mock interview, _he laughs at himself.

Finn puts her speech back in her pocket and throws her coat on the chair. He walks in the bedroom and sees her already lying down. He goes in the bathroom to get ready and brush his teeth with his own toothbrush. As soon as he slips into bed, he feels Rachel sneak up behind him. She throws her leg and arm around him and he just closes his eyes loving the feeling. This time, she started to kiss the back of his neck and hoist herself up to kiss his cheek and then to his mouth. She starts to grind on him and Finn pulls her gently away.

"Baby, not tired, I'm SO tired" he says to her. She looks at him in slight shock, but then smiles and kisses him on the cheek. She wanted to give him sex because it's been yet another 3 months, but this time, there will be no more delays or hold ups. She's going to mature as an actor and learn how to separate her stage life and her real one better this time.

"I'm kinda tired too actually" she said giggling and getting back into her first position of just cuddling him.

"I love you SO much" he said to her as he starts to rub her leg. "I don't know what I would do without you" he sighed. He looked over to her and she had already started to snore and had fallen asleep.

The End.


End file.
